


What Everyone Expects - Part One

by SomeoneYouDontKnow



Series: where they are now|1D [1]
Category: Little Mix (Band), One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alpha Harry, Alpha Zayn, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Angst, Beta Liam, Beta Louis, Cliffhangers, Fluff and Angst, Knotting, M/M, Mates, Mating, Mating Bites, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Mpreg, Multi, Not Beta Read, Omega Niall, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, cliffhanger ending, im sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-22
Updated: 2016-06-12
Packaged: 2018-04-05 16:49:36
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 27,730
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4187421
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SomeoneYouDontKnow/pseuds/SomeoneYouDontKnow
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Zayn, Harry, Liam, and Louis have been a strong, loving pack since they were pups, but now something risks tearing them apart. Louis' close to reaching the Full Pack Age, 25, and that means that they must find a compatible omega in the next three months, or he'll be taken and put into a different pack. Thankfully, Ed, a close friend, introduces the two alphas, Harry and Zayn, to someone they didn't expect. His name's Niall, and now they're in trouble.<br/>//~//<br/>Alpha/Beta/Omega Universe AU</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> So this is my new story! I hope you all enjoy it. Please remember to read the tags, though. And if you don't like it, don't read it!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edited: 28/02/2016

 

 

Louis

 

 

_ To Louis Tomlinson and pack, _

 

The letter came into the mail today. Now Liam's crying, and Harry looks pretty damn close to it as well. Zayn's staring at me with that look in his eyes, the one he saves for desperate times like these, where he can't be the big, scary alpha protecting us all. He looks broken.

We all do.

I don't even notice the tears falling down my cheeks until I'm in Harry's arms, and everyone is surrounding me and holy shit, I can't leave them. Not like this.

 

_ In 2001, Prime Minister Jeffery Todd created the Full Pact Act, the FPA, a law that states that you must have one alpha, his/her beta, and one omega in each pack before one of the pack’s occupants reaches the age of 25, or full pack age. Failure to do so will result in separation of the pack member who has reached full pack age, and a new replacement will be brought in as a permanent substitute for that pack member. _

 

I push feebly at Harry's shoulder, muttering words about how I'm ruining their clothes, but everyone just squeezes tighter. Zayn's behind me, long fingers wrapped around my hips, head buried into the back of my neck. Liam's at my side, sobbing apologies and declarations of love into his hands, and I just pull him closer to me. Now everyone's crying, and I don't know how long we've been standing here. And I really don't care.

It hurts, it hurts so much. Because I'm standing with the people I've been in love with for almost ten years, and we're being forced apart by some  _ stupid _ law and I could never leave any of them and -

"No," I breathe harshly into Harry's curls, "we're not splitting up!" I pull away from the group and face them all.

"It's a law Lou..." Liam trails off, sniffling into his hand as he reaches out towards me, "we can't just say no." And he’s right. All packs need an omega. It’s one of our most important laws. Important, but absolutely unnecessary.

"What happened to the law about not splitting an alpha and their beta up?" I spit back. Liam flinches and I easily deflate, grabbing his arm and pulling him back into a hug. I hate doing this. I hate how we can’t all be perfectly happy without one. Because we don’t  _ want  _ an omega. We don’t  _ need  _ an omega. But that’s not what our government says.

 

_ Again, all packs must contain one alpha, one beta, and one omega. To be without is unhealthy and unsafe for every person, may it be any of the sexes. We are made to complete each other, and that is why this law has been made. _

 

"You know how it works Louis. When a beta or alpha leaves -" Harry starts.

"- they get replaced. Yeah, I know Haz." I finish, looking up at him with watery eyes. Harry makes a pained face, and I turn away, walking across the room to sit cross-legged on the old couch. The others follow suit, and we sit in silence for a few moments. Zayn shifts, biting his lip, and looking down at his lap. He opens his mouth to speak, but closes it again after a few seconds. We give him his time; when he's not commanding others or protecting us, he's more vulnerable than a regular alpha.

Finally, he says, "there is a way we could stay together." He's mumbling, and that's never a good thing. I'm confused at his statement for a minute, before it hits me.

"No," I deadpan. "There is no way we are getting an omega." We've talked about this before. We don't need an omega to make us happy. My face must be full of defiance, because Harry's eyes harden and he growls softly.

"Louis. Calm down. Zayn was just making a suggestion. It's a damn good one too. If we let an omega join, then we could stay together." Harry's voice is an obvious command, but it only proves to make me angrier. Irrationally so.

“In fact,” Harry continues, “it’s in the only way we could stay together.”

 

_ So, we regret to inform you, Mr. Tomlinson and pack, that you must mate with an omega in the next three months and seven days. If you do not, we will unfortunately have to take action and remove Mr. Tomlinson from your pack, and into one we see fit. _

 

"The only reason you want one is so you can fuck it! Bored of Liam and I?" I'm up on my feet, but before I can storm off, a snarl fills the room. A hand is on the back of my neck, and I'm gone.

 

 

* * *

 

 

When I come to, we're all in bed, Harry's spooning me, and Zayn's doing the same to Liam in front of me. I turn my head and bite my lip, looking at Harry, who raises his eyebrow.

"Sorry," I mutter. Everyone's looking at me, and I sigh. "Y-you promise the omega won't come between us?" My voice is shaky, and I hate it. I'm supposed to be the confident one; making the situation better, but the whole thing is just making my head hurt. With a suggestion of an omega in the mix of our relationship…

 

_ If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us at the email or number below. Your local DABOR (Department of Alpha/Beta/Omega Rights) building will be of great help as well. _

 

"Of course not babe." Zayn reaches over Liam and pets my hair. I nuzzle into his hand, and he smiles. "Harry and I, we love you and Liam too much to let a stupid omega come between us. Promise."  I glance at Liam, and take in his grinning face. If this is what we have to do, I'm okay with it, not happy, but okay.

I nod slowly. "The only condition," I start, feeling Harry freeze behind me, "is that I get to pick him."

 

_ Sincerely,  _

 

_ Luke Robert Hemmings, _

_ Minister of Alpha/Beta/Omega Rights _

 


	2. I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louis' picky, and Ed has a plan.

 

 

Liam

 

 

"This is a really bad idea..." I whisper to my alpha, wincing as Louis interrogates the poor omega in the seat across from him. The thing looks so frightened, I almost feel bad for him.

"It was the only way he would agree," Zayn says back. I huff, but nod after a few moments. We watch on for a minute, both knowing that the 'interview' is going nowhere. We are in this cheap place we sometimes go to for drinks, with flashy lights and dance floor that’s packed often, it’s a great place to forget about everything. Harry and Louis are in a booth, and Zayn and I are sitting at the bar on the other side of the building, staring at our mates and the stranger with curiosity and apprehension. A couple sips of his drink later, the blonde omega jumps up, bids the alpha and his beta goodbye, and practically sprints out of the bar. I sigh dramatically, shaking my head.

Zayn tugs at my hand absently, and we walk across the floor, settling into the booth that was recently vacated. Louis seems to be distracted, rambling to Harry, "...obvious that his hair was bleached, like what the hell! And his eyes were that poop brown colour!" Zayn raised his eyebrows at the beta's complaining.

"You don't like my eyes?" He asks. Louis rolls his eyes, looking annoyed.

"Zayn, yours are chocolate brown. His were poop brown. There's a difference!" Louis was turning back to Harry, ready to continue his babbling, when he was interrupted again.

"Why does it matter what he looks like? It's better to make sure he's not rude, yeah?" Zayn turns to Harry. "Was he nice?"

"He was sweet," Harry says, "but a little skittish. And kinda odd. Like, he seemed to be scared to talk to us, you know?"

Louis throws his arms in the air. "See? I'm not just noticing the looks! He just wasn't the one."

"Then who is, Lou? There's only so many available omegas out there, and even fewer who are willing to mate two alphas and beta in three months." I explain, reaching across the table and placing my hands on Louis'. "You are a little picky, sweetheart. Maybe it'd be best to be a bit more open minded?" Louis rolls his eyes, but agrees warily with a small nod of his head.

I smile at him. "Okay. The next guy will be here in an hour or so, wanna dance?" They nod, following me to the dance floor.

 

 

* * *

  
  


 

One Week Later

 

Zayn

 

 

Harry and I are tangled together on the couch, a stupid chick-flick that Harry loves is on the TV, but we pay no attention to it. It's just background noise to us while we lay together. Harry's kissing me, one hand gripping my shirt, the other on my neck. It's a sensitive spot, it's where we are most vulnerable. And Harry, the kinky little shit, is the one who gets off the most when he dominates someone. I'm the main alpha of our pack, so the only time Harry can ever have any power over me is when we're like this, and he's everywhere, and the thing he does with his fucking tongue. Jesus Christ. I am so so so so so done.

And now my hand's in his hair, and the other is curled at his hip and I'm grinding up into his hips to get the friction I need when -

"Are you two done humping like dogs?" My head clears for a moment, and I turn around from under Harry to see a smirking red-head beta standing in our living room.

"Ha. Ha. Ha. Ed, you are so funny. I'm laughing so hard right now," I groan. Ed smirks at me, and I would get up to greet him, shake his hand,something, but Harry's face is in my neck and he's warm and _no thank you Mr. Sheeran_.

"Remind me why I gave him the extra key to our place?" Harry grumbles, and Ed just struts across the room, plopping down on the chair across from us like he owns the place. I glare at him every step of the way. When all he does is smile his big toothy smile back at me, my glare turns harder. He puts his hand up in surrender.

"Don't be so rude, Malik. I may just have a solution to your little problem," he says proudly, and I frown.

"What the hell are you goin' on about Ed? 'Cause we've got a few 'little problems' right now." Harry deadpans, finally peeking his head up from my neck. Ed has the decency to look embarrassed as a flush works it's way up his neck.

"The whole omega thing?" It comes out as more a question, and my eyebrows furrow. The interviews last week definitely didn't go as great as we wanted, but that didn't mean we were giving up on it.

"And how is that any of your business?" I snarl, thinking of how much trouble Louis was in. You can't just tell your friends about your mates' problems. Harry places his hand on my chest gently, and I realize that Ed is cowering in his seat. I send him an apologetic look, and he nods.

"Well, um, in case you wanted to know, there's this omega I've been friends with for a while. He's cute and all, and um, he's looking for a pack. It was just a thought. Sorry if I offended you or something..." Ed trails off, still looking a little skittish.

"Don't worry about it mate. This omega, he nice?" I ask, and Harry sits up, still leaning against me, but able to face Ed properly now. He looked interested, and I briefly wondered if we should have Louis and Liam here while we talk, but I brush off the thought.

"Yeah, pretty too. I reckon you lads will like him. He's a little snarky though, doesn't like people pushing him around. Kinda like Louis in that way. I've known him since we were young, so I know what I'm talking about," Ed states, his smile back on his face now that I’m not being defensive. I sit up beside Harry, and we're looking at each other, and I automatically know what he's thinking.

"What's his name?" Harry asks giddily before I can shape the words with my lips.

"I knew you'd be interested," Ed says cockily, "and you can learn his name when you meet him! Come on, he's off his shift at two!" Bounding up from his spot on the chair, Ed sprints away from our line of sight.

I chuckle lightly, kissing Harry quickly before following Ed out the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Niall comes in next chapter, don't worry!
> 
> Thank you sososososo much for reading this! It means so much to me! All of the lovely comments on the first chapter inspired me to write more! If your interested in another chapter today, comment your opinion! It makes me write faster! 
> 
>  
> 
> Since the summary is kind of confusing, here's the explanation of this Alpha/Beta/Omega Universe.
> 
> A pack is an alpha, a beta, and an omega. Every alpha chooses his/her beta when they are around twelve (the most common age), and their beta sticks with them forever. Since omega's are uncommon, a pack can be two alpha's, two beta's, and one omega. There can be up to five alpha's and beta's to one omega. If you do not have a full pack by the time one of the pack members is 25, that member will be taken away to another pack that needs them.
> 
> Beta's (male and female) are fertile, but only with each other. Omega's (male and female) are fertile, with everyone except other omega's. Alpha women can become pregnant, but it goes against their nature, so it doesn't happen very often.
> 
> (and yes, I understand that Zayn is not in the band anymore. I started this story many years ago, so Zayn stays. sorry not sorry)
> 
> Thanks so much for reading! Please comment and tell me what you think!


	3. II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Introductions, misunderstandings, and fights.

 

 

Harry

 

 

I'm almost jumping in the car as we arrive. We're at a quaint little coffee shop about five minutes away from our house, and, as we park, I yank Zayn out of the car. I barely have time to look at the sign on the doorway, Little Angels, before we're in the store.

There's no intoxicating scent, no amazing fireworks when I lock eyes with one of the omegas. I feel disappointed, somehow believing that everything in those stupid romance comedies are true, but there's no love at first sight, and I feel Zayn deflate a little beside me, probably feeling the same thing.

But now Ed's behind me, pointing at this small thing (omega, my mind supplies) that's waiting tables, and I smile. He has bleached hair, and Louis is going to kill us, but Ed was right, he's cute, pretty, even. The boy's turning around now, catching a eye with Ed, at he waves slightly. His eyes (holy fuck, I lied; he's most definitely pretty, kinda’ gorgeous, with those blue eyes) shift to Zayn and I, and I'm about to give him a dimply smile that I know my mates love, when his eyes harden. I'm taken aback, and now he's glaring. I look back to Ed to ask him what the omega's problem is, when the blonde starts moving.

I don't have much time to prepare as he comes closer to us, and now he's in front of me. His face is icy and how the fuck is he still pretty? I see his lips move, but I'm not paying attention to what he's saying, and apparently Zayn isn't either, because he's staring at us like we're stupid, which, yes Styles, you are. I snap myself out of whatever trance I was in and raise my eyebrows.

"Well?" The blonde asks, and this isn't fucking fair. He's Irish. Wait, does he want us to say something? Shit.

"What'd you say?" I question, feeling like a right idiot when the omega sighs dramatically.

"I asked you if you and your alpha buddy could move your ass's. You're blocking the fucking door," he spits back, spinning around, weaving between the tables, and walking behind the counter. I don't have time to be embarrassed or mad that an omega just mouthed me off, the fuck, when Ed shoves Zayn towards a table. I follow, still confused with the situation. Ed's laughing like mad as we sit down, and I flush slightly, glaring at him. If anyone, hell, if Liam or Louis had done that, Zayn or I would have put them in a drop faster than they could think, like the first day when we talked about getting an omega with Louis. But I didn't this time, and I have no reason as to why. Zayn and I share a look, and he seems to think the same.

Ed clears his throat loudly, getting my attention. He smirking cheekily, annoyingly, as he looks at us. 

"So, now you dumb asses have met Niall." Ed chuckles. "You know how amazing you are at first impressions, right?"

"You said he was nice!" I exclaim, furrowing my eyebrows when Ed starts cackling once again. Zayn buries his head in his hands, and I hear a cough behind me.

"Telling lies about me, Ed?" And, of course, he’s right fucking behind me. Shit. No no no no no. Ed, I'm going to kill you. I turn around in the chair I'm in, and wince at the expression that looks painted on the omega's, Niall's, face. There's a flush creeping up his pale neck, a hand on his cocked hip, and his eyebrows are raised. At least he's not glaring anymore…

"Hey Ni, this is Zayn and Harry," Ed laughs, and what the hell is so amusing?

Niall seems to have the same opinion, because he huffs heavily, "Really, Ed, I could care less about your 'friends'. Could you please just order something?"

Now Ed's frowning, and he says, "What's your problem today, mate? You're usually not this bitchy." Niall's exasperated expression turns into a glare once again, and I wait for the onslaught of swearing and crude names I think the omega's going to say, but it never comes. The blonde just sighs and says,

"Where's your alpha, Ed? Where's Greg?" Realization crosses the beta's face as he stares back at Niall. I'm confused for a second, until I remember that Greg was Ed's alpha, and that makes it look like…

"No. No no no no! Greg's at work, Ni! I would never... Harry and Zayn are just friends!" Ed pleads with Niall, who still looks skeptical. "I love your brother, you know I'm not a cheater! Niall, please!" Ed's off his feet now, causing a big scene, but Niall's hugging him tightly, and everything looks okay. Ed sits back down after a few moments in Niall's arms, and looks up at him gratefully.

"I shouldn't have judged you, honestly, I'm sorry mate," Niall takes a big gulp of air, and turns to us. "And I'm sorry to you two, for being so judgemental. I just..." He trails off, and I smile at him.

"It's no problem, really, we get it," Zayn says smoothly, and smiles too. Even though Niall has a flush rising up his pretty neck, and he's looking really sheepish, he smiles back at us, and, wow.

Niall's name is called from a skinny girl with blonde hair behind the counter, and he acknowledges her before turning back to us. "I'm off in ten, lads, so if you could wait maybe we could chat or something?" I find myself nodding enthusiastically at the question. Niall gives us all one more blinding smile before he leaves, and Ed's eyes are glinting as he looks at us, the fucker, he knows how gone we are.

But. Oh no.

Louis is going to kill us.

 

 

Zayn

 

 

Ed left shortly after Niall sat down with us, and I think Harry and I have been sitting here with him for over two hours, but I really couldn't care less. Even though there was no initial spark or amazing smell pulling me to Niall, like with Liam when we were twelve, I like him. We haven't brought up the topic of mates yet, but I can tell Niall isn't as naïve as some people might perceive him to be; he knows where we're going with the conversation. It's after Harry tells a stupid story about when he was little and fell out of a tree when a silence settles around. It's not uncomfortable, but I can tell Niall's looking for something to say.

We give him a few moments to collect his thoughts, and finally, he asks quietly, "So, are you guys in a full pack, or..." I can tell he's a little nervous, and I see Harry grab his hand on the table. He smiles knowingly at Niall, and says,

"Me and Zayn, we each have our betas, but that's it."

"Where are they?" The blonde questions, and Harry and I share a look. We had both turned our phones off when Ed kept texting us to ask us how 'the date' was going, and we had forgotten about them until now. I make a pained face, and reach into my pocket to grab my phone. Wincing, I quickly text Liam back, noting the 27 missed-calls, and 13 texts.

"We should go," I say to Harry, and notice Niall's face fall slightly. He pulls away from Harry, grabbing his jacket from the back of the chair, and muttering a quick goodbye to us. Before he can slip past me, a grab his small wrist, tugging him to face me again. "Where are you going?"

"Well, you obviously have to go," his voice is tight, eyes cast down, "and I don't want to keep you from your mates." And like that, his arm is pulled from my grasp, and he's gone.

"What the hell was that?" Harry asks quietly, and I shrug my shoulders, somehow feeling rejected, and I have no idea why.

 

 

Liam

 

 

I jump on Zayn and Harry when they get home, scolding them for their stupidity and kissing their cheeks. When I notice there's no smaller body behind me, I realize Louis is standing stubbornly on the other side of the room, glaring at the three of us.

"You met a fucking omega without us?" He's practically spitting, and I flinch involuntarily at his tone.

"Louis, don't use that voice with us," Harry snarls, "Niall was nice, and you still get to see him before we actually decide. Stop being so difficult." No, crap, that the wrong thing to say. Dammit Harry. Now Louis bottom lip is trembling, eyes watering.

"Lou, sweetheart, please don't cry-" I start, reaching towards him, but he's already gone, the bedroom door slamming behind him.

It's quiet, then I turn to Zayn and Harry, a cold look on my face.

"You two have some serious shit to explain."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really, really hate this chapter. God, it seems so choppy, but I've re-written it like four times so I'm just going to leave it like this. Sorry. :/
> 
>  
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	4. III

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Niall's apologetic, and Liam has a big mouth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! A little bit of Niall's P.O.V. Hope you like it!

Niall

 

For about a week after the whole "Zayn and Harry thing", I regret walking out on the two alphas. I liked them, a lot, actually, and I hoped to see them in Little Angels, but a week has gone by now, and they haven't been here. Realizing now that, if they cared about me as much as I did them, they would have shown up to at least say hi.

 _They've probably found a better omega then you_ , my mind tells me bitterly, and I can't help but agree. Maybe they were spooked by my attitude, and just talked to me to be nice. I'm kinda hard to deal with, which I've been told many before by others. It's 'cause I don't just kneel down and accept everything an alpha will say or do, and that gets me in trouble more often then not.

I sigh, trying to shake away my self-pity. I'm off at 3, in fifteen minutes. Just fifteen more minutes.

 

 

* * *

 

 

During my final run around the coffee shop, I hear the door chime, and turn to greet the new customers. My jaw drops when I see who just entered, and who is linked to their arms. Zayn's eyes meet mine almost immediately, and he quickly leads his pack to a the same table that Ed chose the first time they were here.

"They're your last customers, promise Ni," Jesy whispers behind me. She's a tall, curly-haired omega, and my manager. I nod briskly, trying not to show my discomfort in this situation, and walk over to them.

The two betas are staring at me curiously, and one has the audacity to quietly jeer at me as I walk past. Harry growls, but the beta gives me a sneer when he's not looking. I try not to let it bother me; most betas aren't to keen when their alphas make friends with an omega, but I can hear the small tremble in my voice as I ask, "Welcome t-to Little Angels, w-what would like t-to order?"

Before anyone can open their mouth, the same rude beta leans toward Zayn, who is to his right, and whispers, "Wow, you didn't tell us the thing had a stutter." But he's looking right into my eyes; he knows I can hear. I feel my tears threatening to escape, and I turn away from the group. It sounds like Harry is putting the beta into a drop behind me, but I can't seem to care.

Omegas have been discriminated for thousands of years, we were called pets, useless, objects that could be bought and sold, but the issue had calmed down over the last decade. People treat us fairly, and with respect. I've never had to face someone as prejudice as this, until now. I'm stunned to silence by the clear malice in his voice, and try to keep myself from showing weakness.

Jesy and my other co-worker, Perrie, are looking at me from across the room, concern blatant on their faces (well, obviously the 'no weakness' thing isn't going too well). I take a deep breath, shaking my head in their direction as I turn around. I see the glazed look on the beta's face; he's in a drop, and I feel guilty as a spike of relief shoots through me. Harry and Zayn are looking at me with concern, and the other beta has his arm wrapped around the man in a drop. I grimace at the situation in front of me, and quickly come to a decision.

"You can take him out of it, the drop, I mean," I say, still a little shaky. The alpha's look unsure, so I try again, "I kinda need to say something to all of you anyway. It's important, like..." I trail off, not knowing what to say. But Harry's nodding, and raises his hand back to the beta's neck, squeezing at it while he whispers softly into his ear. The brunette slowly becomes aware of everything around him. Harry slips his fingers through the confused beta's hand, and plants a kiss onto his cheek.

I feel a sense of longing run through me at the domestic feel of the four men, but I shake it away as the rude brunette looks at me. "I meant it, mutt," he says with a smirk.

Harry growls loudly and, good thing they're the only customers here, because the beta retorts with a mighty snarl right back at his alpha. I see Harry leap to his feet and, no, please don't fight-

"STOP IT!" The quiet one, who's been attached to Zayn's arm the entire time, suddenly shouts, "All he wants to do is talk to us Louis! Can you not see that? Now I think, and I'm sure everyone else agrees, that you're being a right prick! Listen to him for one second, and maybe you'll actually like the guy!" The beta seems to shrink in his seat after his loud outburst, and continues softly, "Please, Lou." Louis looks properly chastised after the little speech is over, and focuses his gaze to his lap. Harry realizes he's still towering over his beta, so he sinks back onto his chair.

The air in the shop goes cold and uncomfortable for a moment and everyone, except Louis, is staring at me. I take a large gulp of air, trying to calm my nerves, and start, "The first thing I want to say, is that I'm am so so sorry," I see Zayn go to interrupt, and I stick a hand out to silence him. "Please, just let me finish."

When he nods mutely, I continue, "I'm sure Harry and Zayn have told you about what happened when they came to see me last week." I direct the statement at the two betas, and Louis doesn't seem to hear me; he's concentrating so hard on his lap. The other one nods though, so I carry on, "I acted out of line and was rude with your mates, and I'd like to apologize to all of you for my behaviour." At this Louis finally raises his head, his eyes curious but embarrassed at the same time. I send a small smile his way.

"You probably don't have a very good opinion of me because of, you know, what I said, and I'm sorry for that, but I think I've made amends with Zayn and Harry. I'm not asking for your forgiveness," a pause, "but I _am_ interested in..." I flush, "in being in your pack, and I think, since you came here today, that maybe you might feel the same way?" It sounds like a question as it comes from my mouth. No one speaks, and I'm scared to look at them, so I face the floor.

As the minutes tick bye, I become more and more insecure. Who am I to jump to conclusions about who they want in their pack? My hearts racing now; it feels like it's beating 1000 times a minute.

 _Of course they don't want you to come into their pack. You humiliated the alphas, and the betas don't seem to fond_   _of_ _you either._

"Unless, um, unless of c-course," dammit, I'm stuttering again, "you d-don't, like want to? And I'm just being stupid and assuming things-"

"No, no, we actually came here, to, um, ask you to maybe come over, y'know? Like, just to talk and stuff, yeah?" The beta I don't know the name of asks warily. I look up at them, wincing when I notice they're all staring at me. The nervousness in my system is gone now, though, and I'm feeling a small jolt of anticipation running through me. "I'm uh, Liam, by the way. This is Louis," he says, pointing to the other beta, "and you know Harry and Zayn. We all had this long conversation about, well, you, and Lou and I kinda wanted to meet the omega that Haz and Z kept talking about." Liam's babbling a little, and I see Zayn put a hand on his shoulder.

"Babe, you don't wanna scare him off, right?" The alpha chuckles, and I let out a small laugh as well.

"I'm not usually scared off too easily," I say playfully back. A small smile spreads across Zayn's face, and a feeling of accomplishment washes over me.

Suddenly, I feel a tap on my shoulder. I quickly turn around and see Jesy.

"You've been off yer shift for about ten minutes, Hun," she mutters, giving the boys at the table a suspicious look. I wave her off, nodding absent-mindedly.

"That's okay Jes. Just gonna hang out, ya know?" She gives a noise of confirmation, looking at me one last time before strutting off.

I see the curious looks from the table's occupants in front of me. "Just a protective co-worker," I reassure them, a tiny smirk making it's way onto my face. "So, we were talking about going to someone's house..."

 

 

* * *

 

 

Louis

 

I feel terrible. Like, I-just-kicked-a-puppy terrible. And, in a way, I kinda did "kick a puppy". Niall's fucking adorable, and I'm stupid as fuck to ever judge him before I knew him. I'm definitely the last person who will _ever_ admit that I'm wrong, but I was. Yet, the blonde still apologized, to us! To _me_! After I was a sexist arsehole, he still said sorry to me.

_Yeah, Lou, you're a prick._

I was surprised when the omega agreed to coming over to our place after everything that happened. They're all on the couch now, chatting while I make dinner. I don't normally cook, but I feel, if I'm out there with them, I'll say something that'll get Niall's baby blues to water, and no, we're not having any repeats of earlier today. As the last bit of dinner is finishing up, Zayn enters the kitchen, Liam trailing behind him. They're upset, I can tell, but I don't say anything. They can deal with their own shit.

There's a few muttered words between the two, before Liam exclaims, "I just don't understand why you have to lead Niall on." And ohhhh. That.

"Watch your mouth, Liam." Zayn's not growling, yet. "We're not 'leading him on'."

"Then what the hell are you doing?" Liam's in Zayn's face now, and fuck, Niall's going to hear you! _Shut up_!

But apparently Liam can't hear my telepathic pleading, because he continues, "You and Harry can't keep this charade up for much longer. You have to tell him, Zayn!" Liam's shouting, and, shit, it's too late.

"Tell me what?" Niall's standing in the doorway of the kitchen, hands on his hips, with Harry towering behind him. The silence in deafening, and I want to scream at Liam and Zayn _and_ Harry. Niall should have been told about the entire thing first, but Liam should not have brought it up. And, if Liam's face is anything to go by, he feels the same.

"Whose the birthday boy?" Niall asks bitterly. This kid's too smart for his own good, I think as I raise my hand tentatively. He stares at me for a few seconds, and then scoffs.

"So, what, you lot just thought that if you could hide this from poor, pushover Niall that I would just lay over and agree with mating with people who only want me to stay together with each other?" His voice is slowly getting louder, shriller. "Well let me tell you something," he looks at everyone of us individually, a sneer on his face, "I'm not a doormat, and I am definitely _not_ your fucking scapegoat."

We all stand noiselessly as Niall shoves his way past Harry, and walks away. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *A drop is something an alpha can put his/her beta/omega(s) into. It's not like a BDSM drop, it happens when the beta/omega(s) misbehave, are endangering themselves, or threaten others. An alpha must use this ability in a responsible way, because the person in a drop are completely and utterly oblivious to everything around them. It's like they're sleeping, but not. It is illegal to use this without the beta/omega(s) consent, which is agreed upon during the mating process.  
> An alpha can put a stranger into a drop, but it is only for a limited amount of time, and whoever is in the drop still has control of themselves, they just "realize" whose the boss. It is frowned upon to put a stranger in a drop unless completely necessary (they could someone/themselves, etc.). Harry and Zayn are old fashion, as are Louis and Liam, and they believe, at this point, that omegas are less than them. And, like in the older days, they can put anyone who "deserves" it into a drop. This does not make them rude to others (exception of Louis, sometimes); they just don't have many omega friends.*
> 
> I haven't posted in like 4 days, and I think, not to sound rude or conceited (because you guys are amazing!), that part of the reason was because of the lack of comments last chapter (After I wrote this two came up! <3). I'm very insecure about my writing, and the comments help with that! Not saying you should just shower me in compliments, because I really would rather hear constructive criticism and what you really think (but compliments are sill nice too... :) Although, the amount of Hits and Kudos blows my mind! Like I said, I don't like my writing very much, but this just gives me the confidence to write more every day! Thank you guys so much for reading!


	5. IV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Niall's gone.

 

 

Liam

 

 

Louis slept on the couch last night. We were all emotionally drained after Niall walked out, but Louis seemed to take it the hardest. He thinks it's his fault, somehow, because he didn't stop Zayn and I from yelling at each other in the kitchen. He'll realize eventually that he didn't do anything wrong, but it may take awhile. Lou's always blaming himself for stupid, trivial things. But this thing isn't stupid, really. It's important, to make sure we can stay with each other.

I cringe after having that thought. I've been trying to convince myself that we weren't going to use Niall, that he wasn't just someone we needed to stay together, like Niall had pointed out. But I know I'm just lying to myself. I know that I, and probably the others, had no intention of falling in love with the blonde. We needed someone, and he was useful, and Jesus, if that doesn't make us sound like assholes. I had felt guilty when we were all talking last night, with Niall acting so sincere and happy with the idea of us becoming his mates. So, I went to Zayn.

I don't regret doing that, I just regret seeing the look on Niall's face when he found out. He had to find out sooner or later anyway. I did the right thing.

At least, that's what I keep telling myself.

 

 

* * *

 

 

I wake to a particularly loud snore in my ear. Keeping my eyes shut, I reach behind me to push away the body that's plastered to my back. I can immediately tell it's Zayn when a grumbled protest falls from his lips, and he pulls me tighter to his chest. Sighing, I decide to just lay in my alpha's warm embrace.

After a few moments, I stretch my arms out in front of me, and immediately open my eyes when my fingers glide through an un-occupied space. The bed is empty, save for Zayn and I. It's now that the memories are rushing back to me, and a feeling of regret and guilt course through me. Niall's gone. He's not coming back. We have two months to find another omega.

Fuck.

As the depressing thoughts race through my head, I shift out from Zayn's arms, pressing a kiss to his sweaty forehead, and step out of the door to our room. I wander down the hall, which opens up to our small living room. Looking around, I notice Louis curled up on the couch, just the top half of his face visible from under the blanket. He, from I can see, is flushed, hair standing up in every direction. I stand, looking at him for a few moments, before I notice movement from the side of my vision.

Harry smiles at me from where he sits on the loveseat tucked into the corner of the room. There's a pillow resting on his lap, and a mug sits carefully on top of the pillow, balanced only by Harry's left hand resting lightly on the side. I feel a jump in my heart at the grin full of dimples that my mate is giving me. Careful not to wake the sleeping beta in the room, I stride towards Harry and sit by his side cautiously, not wanting to knock the cup to the floor. Quelling any fears I recently had, Harry places the mug on the table beside him.

"Zayn sleeping?" Harry asks, his voice rough and deep. I shiver, and nod. He mimics my action, and shifts over so he's pressed against my side, his arm slipping over my shoulders. I automatically melt into him, burying my face into his neck. After a minute, Harry moves around until he resting his back against the armrest of the love seat, my body lying in-between his legs. We scent each other, and a sound like a whine and moan mixed together pours unconsciously from my mouth. Harry chuckles, and pulls me closer to his chest.

We lay together for what feels like hours, content with just holding each other. Harry and I, like Zayn and Louis, don't have much time for each other as we do the others. Zayn is my alpha, and will always be the person I will follow to the ends of the world for. He's my best friend, the person who will never judge me or stop loving me, no matter what I do. I know it's the same for Haz and Louis. They're fully and completely each others, but it doesn't mean they love Zayn and I any less. Alphas and their betas have a special bond, and it ties them together the moment they are born. Though I love Louis and Harry, and I would die for either one of them, Zayn is the person who my life completely revolves around. Louis and I are extremely close, though, both being betas. We understand how each other feel more than either of our alphas ever will, and I know Zayn and Harry feel the same about each other. Because of all of this, Harry and I (and Louis and Zayn), don't spend as much time alone together. It's not like we don't care for each other, we just unconsciously spend more time with the others.

That's why time like this is so important, I think as I nuzzle my face further into Harry's bare chest, because we may not have much time left.

And, yeah.

Back to depressing thoughts.

Almost like he notices my mood, Harry runs a clammy hand through my short brown hair, sighing quietly before whispering, "Everything'll be okay, Li. We'll figure it out."

I raise my head questionably at the alpha, feeling my eyes water slightly as I say, "Promise?"

Harry cups my face in both of his hands, smoothing the wrinkles from my forehead and leaning down to kiss my hair. "I promise." But his voice is weak and sad-sounding, and it makes my heart break even more. I crawl up to kiss Harry properly, and his hands drop to my sides. It's soft, loving, and I can't ask for anything more at the moment. Harry pulls me into his lap, and I thread my fingers through his curly hair. We kiss like this, slow and passionate, for as long as we can before we both have to pull away to breathe. Pressing our foreheads together, Harry and I stare at each other, his green eyes gazing into mine, until a shift across the room catches our attention.

Louis staring at us from his place on the couch. He has a small, tired smile on his face, and is looking at the two of us with an emotion in his eyes that I rarely see. It's vulnerability, and complete and utter despair.

I feel Harry tense under me, and I know he saw it as well. Noticing the looks on our faces, Louis automatically puts a smirk on his face, and says, "Now, don't let me stop your disgustingly cute staring-into-each-other's-eyes cliche!" He laughs, but we can both see through the facade that most people wouldn't look twice about. Louis get's snarky and rude when he's feeling to much of an emotion, and it used to hurt us, but now we can all tell the signs. After Louis' laughter fades out, the room falls into an awkward silence. The first one we have had in years.

"Lou?" Harry asks, almost noiselessly in the quiescent room. Louis visibly swallows, lifting his chin defiantly as if to say: I'm not weak, stop worrying about me!

Harry sighs exasperatedly, gently pushing me until we're just sitting in front of each other, not touching. He then turns toward Louis, a contemplative look on the brunette's face. Opening his arms slowly, silently, Harry beckons Louis with a jerk of his head, telling him wordlessly to get his ass over here and stop being twit. It takes a moment, but Louis complies, the mask on his face falling off once again as he crosses the room in a few steps, leaping into Harry's lap. The alpha lets out a huff, breathing out a fast breath as Louis knocks the air out of him.

I smile as the two nuzzle each other, scenting, before they settle. Noticing my absence almost immediately, Louis stretches his arm and tugs at my hand, muttering a small, "Come here before I make you." I give a breathy laugh, and curl into Harry's side, locking my fingers with Louis'.

"Someone's missing." It's quiet, just a whisper in the silent room, but Harry and I still look at Lou when he says the words, and I know he doesn't just mean Zayn. The mood turns sour and cold as we think about the omega who walked out of our lives last night.

It lasts a couple of seconds, the silence, that is, until a sleepy-eyed Zayn walks through the doorway, and the comment is forgotten.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I'd like to apologize for this being so late, and so short. I went to my first One Direction concert three days ago, and while I was driving down to the stadium with my friend, I got a call that my grandma had passed away. She had been fighting excruciating pain for some weeks, but it was sudden and heartbreaking for my entire family, especially since I was very close with her.
> 
> I'd like to say right now that I'm not trying to get pity, or a sympathy vote from any of you, I'm just saying that the updates may slow down now. I'm definitely not quitting on this story, but I'm also not in a great emotional state, and I'd rather be able to produce good work when I feel better, and I also don't think it's healthy for me to put all my time and effort into this story when I still need time to grieve.
> 
> Thank you for all of your continuous support on my story (100 kudos!) and I hope you can stick with me through this rough time in my life.


	6. V

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Niall mopes, and plans are made.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have had the worst two weeks. Like ever. First, I had an eleven hour car ride, and then a funeral, another eleven hour car ride, and then the day we got home, my computer crashed. Like, everything I had saved is gone. Seven one-shots, two chapters from this fic, and everything else I was working on. Plus all of the pictures for my blog. It fucking sucks. So if this chapter seems extra depressing, that's why. If I sound whiny I sincerely apologize, but I'm pretty pissed off.

  


  


Niall

  


  


I busy myself with trivial things as the weeks, and eventually month, goes by. I know my co-workers are worried about me, and even my mom threatened to fly up from Ireland if I kept ignoring her calls. It's not like I wouldn't love to see her, but I know she can't afford to travel to London two times in two months, and the last thing I want to do is deprive my mother from seeing her second grandchild being born.

Theo is my nephew, my two-year-old gorgeous nephew, and he was, well, still is, my favourite person in the entire world. And now there's another little one on the way, and I'm not quite sure how I feel about it. My mom's been ecstatic since she found out about Denise's pregnancy, but she doesn't know how tight the two of them are with money. I do, and I'm just scared that even with Ed, my brother and sister-in-law won't have the money to look after another kid.  


Don't get me wrong, I'll support my family with whatever they choose to do with their lives; I'm just scared of what's going to happen. Greg is already working double shifts, and Denise being on maternity leave will not help their funds. Ed helps out too, but there's only so much minimum wage can do.  


I'm brought out of my miserable thoughts when Jesy taps me on the shoulder, a sympathetic look on her face. A flush climbs up my neck when I realize I'm standing in the middle of the store, staring down at a table, which is, thankfully, empty. My boss pats my shoulder lightly, and turns away. I watch as she retreats, feeling useless as Jesy disappears into the back room. My brain has been everywhere as of late, and working isn't helping.  


I look back at the table in front of me, cleaning it, before moving on to the next one, trying to forget the thoughts of curly hair and dark brown eyes that plague my mind.  


I'm laying on my bed when Greg calls, laptop sitting on my legs, bowl of chips beside me. I should probably be doing something productive, but all I feel like is mucking around on YouTube. So when a familiar number shows up on my phone, I'm overly giddy to talk to my brother. Feeling like I haven't properly communicated with someone for the last few weeks, I practically yell a greeting into the speaker, and a comically large smile envelopes my face as I hear Greg laugh.

"Excited to hear from me?" He chuckles. I nod vigorously, before remembering that he can't see me.  


"Well it's easy ta’ be excited when I haven't heard from you in weeks!" I exclaim, a mock-scolding tone lacing through my words. We both laugh together, and I'm hit with a blast of nostalgia so hard it knocks the air from my chest. Embarrassingly, I feel a stinging sensation in my eyes. I miss him.  


"So what's new? Ed told me that he introduced you to some of his friends? How's that?"  And instantly the mood I am in vanishes, replaced by annoyance at my brothers suggestive tone. I can see his cocky grin in the back of my mind, and I groan, shifting the laptop off of my body.  


"It's nothing Greg. It's not," I sigh, "it's just nothing, okay? Leave it be." Standing up, I leave my room and start nervously pacing around the island in my kitchen, waiting for Greg to split the silence that once was a light-hearted conversation.  


When it goes on longer then I can handle, I sink against the counter and say, "I'm sorry Greg. Just like, tired n' all that. Didn't mean ta’ snap at you." I can hear his hum of forgiveness through the speaker of the phone, and I relax a bit. My apology doesn't seem to help the conversation, though, because the uncomfortable silence settles again, and I hate it. I hate how my own brother and I can't have a decent conversation with each other without it getting weird. And it's not like it's his fault.  


"So how's Riley? I haven't talked t' her in forever!" I ask awkwardly, stumbling over the words.  


Greg doesn't seem to notice, though, because he answers enthusiastically, "She's great! Still happy about the baby and everything. She's taking it pretty well, considering." I nod to myself, thinking back to when they first found out Denise was pregnant with Theo, three years ago. Riley is Ed's girlfriend. It's rare, but sometimes an alpha and their beta don't have a romantic or sexual relationship, and that's what happened between Ed and Greg, and Riley and her alpha. If this happens it's very suspicious if a beta is ever seen in public with an alpha that isn't his/her own, and it's almost considered cheating. Ed and Riley's relationship was still very new when Denise was pregnant the first time, and Riley was really jealous. Just because it wasn't Ed's baby growing in Denise's stomach, it was still his baby, because it was also his pack.  


To make the story short, Riley didn't take it very well, until I reminded her that she would feel the same way if her alpha knocked their omega up. She's better with it, especially since she's seen how cute Theo is, but we all know she still holds some jealousy that it's not her that's with child.

"I'm guessing from your tone earlier that I shouldn't ask if you've got any pack interests?" Greg says out of nowhere, and the question shocks me out of my thoughts. I think about it for a moment, contemplating telling him about the mishap that had happened a month ago, but I ignore the urge to spill my secrets to my brother.

"There's no one. Sorry for dat earlier but like, I'm just over-worked. Rude lately, I guess." I can tell he doesn't believe a word I'm saying, I can barely believe it myself, but Greg lets it go. And before the conversation turns cold again, I make up a quick excuse, and hang up the phone, feeling as if I shouldn't have answered the call in the first place.  


  


  


* * *

  


  


"Those boys you spent the day with, few weeks ago? Yeah, they came by the other day." I almost spit out my drink across the counter. Perrie's eyes widen dramatically as I start a coughing fit, still processing what she said. "They told me to say that they wanted to talk to you. Said the date was coming up soon or something," she says, patting me lightly on the back as my lungs are finally cleared of water. "They left this." It's a small slip of paper, a number messily scrawled down with black ink. I stare down at it for a while, long after Perrie has left to deal with customers, when Jesy yells that my break is over.

I don't know why, but as get up to start clearing tables, I place the piece paper in my pocket.  


  


  


* * *

  


  


It's not a week after I get the number that it's typed into my phone, and I'm calling it. It's Zayn who picks up, a tired, raspy greeting spoken through the phone. I say nothing, silently waiting for him to hang up, and when he finally does, I can't explain the tears falling down my face.

  


  


* * *

  


  


The next time I call it's Louis who answers, and it's in the middle of the day, so I'm confused by his voice, how it heavier and quieter then it usually is, and then when he sniffs lightly into the phone I realize he's crying. He seems to get it together after a few moments, his words shaky as he says, "Yeah? Who's this?"

I can't pull the phone away fast enough and end the call. I know he's heard at least one of my body-wracking sobs before the line goes dead, but I can hardly put any effort into caring as I curl into myself, trying to stop from shaking.  


  


  


* * *

  


  


It's the morning after, and I'm lifting a cup of coffee to my lips, silently sipping at the scalding liquid, when my phone rings. It's the only sound in my flat, echoing of the walls. I carefully put the mug onto the counter, and grab my phone that is sitting comfortably in my pocket. It's when I see the number, though, that I freeze.

It's the only number in my contacts that doesn't have a name, but I had it memorized by the end of the first hour I got it, so it doesn't really matter. I have no idea what to do with myself, as I stand, staring at the small screen. After waiting until the last ring of my phone, I press the talk button, and gingerly bring it to my ear. Both ends of the phone are quiet for a few seconds, until a hoarse voice says, "Niall? Is that you?"  


I can't breathe, and I'm still, standing wordlessly with the phone gripped tight in my palm.  


"Niall please. You called us first. Please," the pleading in Liam's voice is hard to miss, and I try to relax myself forcefully; making sure my muscles are loose and my teeth unclenched.  


Then, slowly, like I could scare Liam away (though, I'm the one more likely to run), I say, "Yeah? Hi, uh, hi Liam?"  


There's a little gasp on the other end, and then a small silence that settles weirdly. I don't know what to say, emotions like regret, helplessness, and relief rushing through me all at once. It's overwhelming, and I'm tempted to hang up the phone, like a coward, when Liam's voice rings through once again.

"Your boss was determined," he stumbles through the sentence, quick to try to break the ice, "said you didn't want anything to do with us. Took so many trips to that coffee shop until we realized you weren't just sick all the time like she was telling us. You'd switched shifts." As Liam drifts off, I feel a swell of affection for Jesy; she's always trying to protect me, even though she was an omega as well. Then I realize, with a sudden feeling of dread, what Liam had said. They looked for me. They cared enough to look for me. Or-  


"Li-Liam," I say, stuttering. I take a breath and start again, "Liam, when's Louis' birthday?" Trying to ignore the way he goes deathly silent I bring my thumb nail to my mouth, chewing on it nervously.  


There's a sigh, and then Liam says, "We have two weeks, Niall."  


A gasp forces it's way out of my mouth, and I whimper involuntarily. I can hear rustling and muffled voices on the other line, but it doesn't seem to reach my brain. All I can think of is no! Pack stays together. _Pack not sad. Pack happy because we stay together._ And before I can register my instinctual thoughts, Liam's talking again.  


"Jeez, Niall! Warn us, yeah? Harry and Zayn just about had a freak out," he says breathlessly. I don't know what he means at first, but then I remember the basic alpha instinct; protect omegas. Making a distress noise probably didn't help with that.  


"Sorry," I mumble, then, "wait, can they hear me?" Again, there's a conversation held on the other line, but it sounds far away and too quiet, so I guess that someone has their hand over the microphone.  


When I'm starting to get sick of the silence, Harry voice chimes through the phone, "Yeah, Ni, we're all here." And shit. Things just got a lot more scary.  


"Oh. Right." I'm shivering at the thought of everything, trying to comprehend what has happened in the past ten minutes.  


"Why'd you call us first?" It's Louis this time, and he has bitterness added to his tone. "I'm guessing it wasn't just to ask about my birthday." There's a lump in my throat, and I fight the instinct to blurt out apologies and run back to them. Though, I kind of am already doing the latter.  


"I, uh, changed me mind. Like, about the whole mating thing," I say. It's rushed and mumbled, but I can tell that they've heard it when I hear gasps of shock.  


"What? Are you serious?" Harry questions, his usual slow drawl higher-pitched and fast. The others asks similar things, and I cut them off before it becomes a shouting match on the other side of the phone.  


"Yeah, I thought about it." Lies, I tell myself; this is a split-second decision, and the only reason you're doing this is because you "instincts" are telling you to. "As soon as possible, yeah?" And maybe you feel sorry for them.  


There's a hum that sounds like an agreement, and Harry says, "I'm so happy that you get to be part of our lives."  


"We've been waiting for you for so long," Louis mutters next. I laugh, trying to cover the lump that's forming in my throat.  


"You're so fucking corny, the lot of you," I say, wiping furiously at my eyes. There's nervous laughter from the boys, then some more silence.  


Zayn breaks it, "So, you free tomorrow?" And it's rushed, and we should be getting to know each other better, before I jump into this and ultimately get my heart broken by these boys who only love each other, but I seem not to care less, as I agree and we make plans.  


When I finally hang up the phone, regret icy in my veins, I think back to when I was a child, and wished to meet and love (and be loved by) my true mates. It seems I've done the former, but they have no idea. I see heartbreak in my future, but I can't think of a reason I wouldn't make the same decisions I just did.  


My instincts seemed to choose this fate for me, but I know that I'm the one going through with it. And that terrifies me more than anything else.  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (This chapter seems really confusing [why was Niall so emotional? why did he choose to become mates with them? what does the end mean? etc.] don't worry. Everything will come together in time. ;)
> 
> I'm not sure how long it will be until the next update. It could be a week, or maybe two or three. I'm not in the greatest mindset to write at the moment, and I don't want to write anything if it's going to suck (like this chapter) because of that. I do hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I am going to finish this fic, hiatus or no. The real question is how long it's going to take, and for that, unfortunately, I do not have an answer.


	7. VI

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maybe this isn't going to be as hard as they thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooo it's been a lot of months but here's this chapter! Hope you like it! :)

 

Harry

 

It's a day later that Niall's walking through the threshold to our house, towing a plastic bag full of essentials behind him. And instead of weird silences and awkward greetings like I expect to be exchanged between the five of us, the omega's loud and friendly, treating us like old friends instead of strangers. Which, as horrible as it is, we basically are.  
  
It may have something to do with how much we've texted and talked on the phone in 24 hours. It's been mostly Louis and Niall talking, for some reason the dislike for each other (or, Louis' dislike for Niall) made them closer, because they've been conversing non-stop. The rest of us had a few conversations with the blonde, but nothing as in-depth as the beta and omega.  
  
It brings a faint memory to my mind, of a younger version of Liam and Zayn, talking non-stop over the phone whenever Liam was on a road trip with his dad. They were quite obsessed with each other, not unlike most alpha and betas are in the first years, not unlike Louis and I were. I remember a time when I was jealous of the bond they had. Liam was my friend first, had been for years, and it wasn't fair that another alpha just got to barge in and take him away. There's was a period in my life where I didn't talk to either of them for years, because I was childish and wanted someone I could love that intensely. And now I have three someones. (Maybe, hopefully, four.)  
  
After the greetings and hugs are exchanged, we all settle down in the living room. We talked about it before the omega arrived; we didn't want him to feel uncomfortable, or like he didn't belong. So we set up ground rules. No cuddling with anyone. No initiating anything romantic or sexual. And always include Niall in everything. The last thing we want to do is make him feel like he's not part of our relationship.  
  
It seems, though, that Louis is deaf, because when I come back from getting tea in the kitchen, he and the blonde are tangled together on the couch. Niall doesn't look uncomfortable though like I was expecting. He's got a small grin on his face, sitting with his back to the beta's chest, in between his legs. Their fingers are tangled together, and a rush of...something runs through me. It doesn't feel like jealousy. It's warm and nice and I want to bury myself further into the feeling, make it stay forever.  
  
It's idle chit-chat and small talk for a bit, as I sit in the love seat with Zayn. Liam's at his feet, his alpha's hand running through his short hair. I'm a little surprised by it, but I don't say a word. We don't think any less of our betas, they're the loves of our lives, they're our equals. That doesn't control our instinct, though. When one of us, alpha or beta, feels overwhelmed or in a situation they don't exactly feel comfortable with, the other comforts. For alphas, they need to be in control of something. On the opposite end, betas need to feel loved and a lot of the time, that means being dominated.  
  
At this point, as I study the pair, I can't tell if Zayn's the one who needs to dominate, or if Liam's the one that needs to be submissive. It's usually easier, we as a pack have a sense of how each other are feeling at almost all times, but they both are radiating uncomfortable, and I don't know what to do about it.  
  
It's obvious it's because of Louis and Niall, and how they're just wrapped around each other. The omega doesn't seem to notice, and if Louis does, he doesn't comment. It irks me, because I know he can feel Liam's anxiousness, and can see Zayn fidgeting around in his seat, but he doesn't let up, stroking through the blonde's hair and whispering into his ear. The conversation eventually leads to nothing, and Zayn, Liam and I are sitting and staring at the two men murmuring to each other, giggles slipping past Niall's lips almost every time Louis says something.  
  
"Louis, that's enough," I say finally, wincing when the blonde's head shoots up at the authority in my voice. Niall backs away from Louis carefully, looking between the two of us like someone's going to yell at him, until he's sitting at the opposite end of the couch.

Louis doesn't try to hide his anger and annoyance at my command, giving me a quick sneer before reaching for the omega, trying to coax him back into his arms. I snarl at my beta's disobedience and jump to my feet. Louis shrinks back at the sound, trying valiantly to fight his alpha before succumbing and exposing his neck. Nodding wordlessly at the display of submissiveness, I turn to the omega, shocked when I see the half-anger and half-anxiousness in his expression.

"What the fuck was that?" He asks, concern for Louis in his eyes as he stares at the beta. Zayn and Liam stand, feeling the tension in the room soar, and Niall moves to match their stance. 

"I disobeyed an order, Niall it's fine." Louis says quietly, shying away from his alpha's eyes. 

When the blonde still looks confused, I elaborate, "we all promised before you got here to not get into your space or, basically, touch you at all. Louis didn't abide by that."

"So what?" Niall seethes. "You're all just allowed to control what I do? I'm sorry, I thought there was freedom for all sexes in dis country! Ya don't get to dictate whether or not I wanna ta touch any of you. Dat's not your choice, it's mine, so I would greatly appreciate it if you'd back da fuck off and let me decide me own actions." His accent gradually gets thicker as he talks, as I've noticed whenever he's upset.

The first thought that comes to my head, surprisingly, is how fucking  _amazing_ our omega is for standing up to us, for not rolling over at the first hint of dominance from someone else. And it's a little unnerving, not feeling the least bit resentful about Niall arguing. But it makes my heart soar, and I don't question the feeling of admiration coursing through my body. 

"'m sorry," Liam says, his eyes following Niall's pacing in front of the door. The blonde stops when he hears the beta's voice, but there's still a hardened look of determination on his face, and it's oddly attractive. And as I look to the other dark-haired alpha, I see the same feeling in his eyes.

"We all are. We just didn't want to make you uncomfortable," Zayn explains, and, when Niall goes to interrupt, says, "and yes, we now know that wasn't our place. It's your choice, not ours." 

"Damn right," Niall responds. He seems to have simmered down as Zayn spoke, but I can still see the built up tension in his shoulders, his jaw locked and eyes hard. 

"We always do this, don't we?" I chuckle darkly. "We do or say something stupid, and then Niall knocks us onto our stupid sexist asses." 

"We were raised differently, Haz. We can't help-" Liam tries.

"That makes no difference," Niall and Louis chorus, and we all look to the beta, who walks over to stand by the fidgety blonde's side.

Louis clasps the omega's hand, and Niall gaze strays down to look at the entwined fingers when Louis says, "Our upbringing shouldn't affect our actions. We're the ones who control our bodies. Just because we were taught to treat different sexes like they're lower than us doesn't mean that we have to follow that." He turns to Niall, lifting his chin and stepping closer. 

"I am so sorry for the things I have done that hurt you. I,  _we_ ," Louis gives us a look, "are still learning. We're not totally perfect yet. But we're trying." Niall looks pleased with this, a small, shy smile slipping from his lips. I see Louis glance down at it, then, before anyone realizes what's happening, they're kissing. And,  _wow_.

It's all soft and sweet; Louis' small hand cupping Niall's cheek, and the other straying down to palm at the blonde's lower back. Niall makes a little noise in the back of his throat, his recently still arms climbing up and over the beta's shoulders, running his fingers through the soft hairs at the back of Louis' head. They beautiful together, slow and pretty and it makes my heart ache at how much I love it. It's probably the most innocent kiss I've ever seen Louis be apart of, and I'm just waiting for-

Niall gasps, hands stop drawing patterns into Louis skin and a shudder runs through him. Louis takes clear advantage of this, weaving both arms around the blonde's waist and pulling him snug to his body, kissing him with the enthusiasm that I'm used to. Niall doesn't stay pliant and still for long, hitching one leg up over Louis' hip and responding to the kiss with the same amount of keenness as the beta. 

It makes me dizzy with want, watching as Louis easily rules the kiss, but Niall still fights back and makes it known that he isn't just going to let Louis control everything. It's different but perfect all the same, and I feel my joggers tightening when a voice cuts clear through the loud noises of the two kissing.

"Lou, I think that's enough," Zayn says, breathy and obviously turned on, judging by the bulge in his trousers. I almost forgot they were standing beside me, so focused on my beta and omega.  _Not your omega. Not_ yet _._

Liam looks to be in the same shape as his alpha, hair a mess when he inevitably ran his hand through it thirty times, breathing heavy and sweat beading his forehead.

I feel like a teenager popping his first knot again, turned on over almost nothing, but through our link I could feel everything Louis was feeling, the rush of euphoria whenever Niall ground his little hips into Louis' or dug his fingernails into the beta's scalp. 

When the two finally pull away, Louis still holds Niall close, turning to playfully glare at Zayn and say, "c'mon love. Just having a bit o' fun." He gasps a little after, and I fix my stare to Niall's lips latched onto the brunette's collarbone, sucking a small mark into the tanned skin. When the omega pulls off he smirks, kissing the bruise once more before backing out of Louis' embrace. 

He moves to me next, cheeky smile on his face, but I hold my arms out to stop the blonde. He looks hurt, backing up a step and crossing his arms protectively over his chest. I can see the rest of the pack looking at me curiously, and maybe a little judgement from Louis, but I try to smile and dismiss his worries.

"I want my first kiss with you to be real." Niall gives me a look, eyebrow raised and sarcastic comment on the tip of his tongue, when I continue, "not that this wouldn't be real. But I would rather kiss you in some heat-of-the-moment thing, like with Louis." I see Zayn rolling his eyes and Liam holding in a laugh. "I'm a romantic."

"Well fine," Niall sticks his tongue out, cutting off whatever Louis was about to say. "More for Liam then." He practically leaps to the other beta, pulling him close and smashing their lips together. 

Despite the rough start, Liam and Niall's kiss is sweetly short, modest in a way that only the beta can be. I can feel content almost radiating off of Liam when the omega finally pulls away, the exact opposite of Louis, the former loose with happiness and adoration for the blonde, which I can relate to.

It's when Niall's pushed against the wall roughly by Zayn in their kiss that the arousal starts to come back. He's whining loudly into the alpha's mouth, Zayn obviously using his dominance and barely-seen upper-body strength to lift Niall, the blonde's legs twining around his waist. He makes seemingly unconscious little noises whenever Zayn kisses him, and it makes my legs weak. I have to actually lean against one of the walls when I see our omega's pink tongue slip out of his lips into Zayn's mouth. 

After a few minutes of sloppy, but oh so beautiful kissing, Niall pulls back, lips red and wet and swollen, and tilts his head to the side, baring his neck. Zayn looks just as surprised as I feel, staring and the long, pale expanse on skin exposed to him. He looks to me, then the betas; not sure what exactly to do.

When everything's still silent, and Zayn hasn't moved, Niall sighs, running his hand up to the back of Zayn's head, putting a small amount of pressure there. "Bite me," the blonde breathes, "c'mon Z, mate me, please." But the alpha still doesn't move.

I can feel his hesitance and indecision, and I know where it's coming from, but Niall said he gets to choose what he wants to do, and if this is it, and if Zayn's willing, we have no right to stop it. I try to send the reassurance to the dark-haired man, and I can see Liam and Louis doing the same. We all want, _need_ , this. It's going to be done sooner or later, anyway. 

Niall whimpers, loud and needy in a way I've never seen him. Zayn swivels his head back toward him, eyes on his jugular, before curving his neck down and sinking his teeth into the warm flesh.

It's so euphoric I slip to the ground, basking in the sensation of it all. My vision's solid black for a short second, and then a flash of colours for a bit longer. I remember the feeling from when I first mated Louis and Liam, and then Zayn a few weeks after. Generally, you mate with someone while knotting them. We couldn't do that with Liam and Louis, since betas aren't made to take knots, and it could fatally injure them, and I don't think I would've been comfortable having sex with Niall at this point in our relationship, but I can't even imagine doing this while having sex. It would probably kill me, or if not I'd be passed out for a lot longer than the few minutes I am now.

When my vision clears, I see the rest of my pack is sprawled out on the floor too, Liam and Louis tangled together near the sofa and Niall panting heavily on top of a very happy looking Zayn. Once I can get my bearings, I realize that the omega is removing himself from the loose-limb alpha, sending a dopey apologetic smile to Zayn as he crawls slowly over to me. 

Once he's comfortably in my lap, and I'm greedily nosing into his neck for his beautiful sent, Niall presents his throat again, and I kiss his chapped, pink mouth softly, chastely, before succumbing to my instincts and sinking my canines into his pretty skin. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I have this and four other chapter done! The reason for that is, yet again, my computer crapped out, shut down, and didn't turn back on. So, I wrote out five chapters by hand, and, now that I have a new computer, I'm transferring them onto here. The next chapters will be out every two weeks, because it's driving me crazy that I don't have a schedule to follow.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	8. VII

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Niall just needs some time, apparently.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Angst? Yes. (Very bad) Partial smut? Yes. Oopsie. 
> 
> Don't worry kids, it just gets worse from here! :)
> 
>  
> 
> (Be aware that the rating is now Explicit.)

 

Zayn

 

The night isn't filled with much action; our (he's  _ours_ now) omega is exhausted from mating, and after crawling up off the floor, we saunter straight to bed, Niall squished between Louis and me in the middle of the mattress. 

In the morning Harry and I have work early, both of us working at the same law firm, so I quietly try to extract myself from the bundle that's curled around my back. But Niall's grip is firm and unforgiving, latching on to my sides for dear life. After a few minutes of useless struggling to untangle myself from his clutches, I give Harry a pathetic pout, and, as he's chuckling at the  _absolutely hilarious_ situation I'm centered in, he crawls over his beta and plops down beside us. Louis isn't amused that he has to detach his arm from the blonde to make space for Harry, but he rolls to the other side of the bed anyway, grumbling half-hearted swear words as he cuddles up to Liam. 

Harry tries valiantly to pry Niall's arms off me, but it only ends up with the same results, this time with two angry betas wanting to sleep. We mutter apologies to the two, but Louis' in a terrible mood this morning, and chucks a pillow at his alpha's face. Harry ducks down, dodging the flying bundle of fabric and stuffing, and it soars over Harry's body, striking Niall right in the back of the head. 

No one breathes for a few seconds, waiting impatiently as the blonde snuffs, shaking his head a little, then lifting it fully off my back. Niall looks around, confusion wafting off him noticeably, and then colour quickly floods his cheeks when he realizes what he's doing. 

"Sorry, sorry!" He says, and I immediately miss the warmth of the omega's arms when hastily pulls them away. There's an anxious smell in the room now, due to the blonde, who is squirming a little at his place between us. I turn until I'm facing the rest of my pack, and see a look of bewilderment on Harry, Louis, and Liam's faces that matches mine. Louis and Liam sit up at the strange turn of events, and I can see that it makes Niall even more uncomfortable. 

I frown, putting work in the back of my mind as I back off the bed slowly. The omega seems relieved, finding an out and following me off the mattress. He then, to our utter confusion, bolts out of room, leaving the door wide open in his escape. 

"What the fuck?" Louis stands, clad in only pajama pants, and follows Niall's path. When he gets to our bedroom door Harry makes a noise of disagreement, and Louis stops, annoyed, in his path.

"This is new for him, Lou. You know that people usually are together for sometime before they mate, but we couldn't do that because of the...unusual circumstances," Harry explains, Louis huffing and rolling his eyes. "Hey. Louis, this isn't a joke. He needs time. I know everything seemed just jolly yesterday, but Niall still needs to process everything. And we need to give him time and space to do that, yeah?" The alpha looks at all of us, and we nod simultaneously, though Louis' is mildly sarcastic, with a sneaky eye roll that his alpha doesn't seem to catch. 

"So, what do we do then? Are we supposed to act like we're in a relationship with him? I don't understand what the etiquette is here," Liam pipes up, moving nervously between the sheets on the bed. Harry shifts over to the fretting beta, throwing a tanned arm over his broad shoulders and pulling Liam to his chest. I look onto the scene with fond eyes, but the underlying fear for Niall and what's going to happen in still fresh and heavy in the back of my mind.

"We'll be his friends, for now. He needs us," I start, seeing the boys' eyes turn to me, "but we only do what he's comfortable with. We have to let him decide what he wants."

"So, basically, we have no say in this?" Louis looks out the door once again, looking for our mate who won't be there. "He gets to decide if he wants a relationship with us?" The brunette has a hard frown on his face, hands clenching into fists at his side.

"He's gonna' have a relationship with us, babe. It's just up to him if it's romantic or not," I say, watching for the negative reaction that will inevitably come from Louis at my words. Surprisingly, there isn't one. The beta is stiff for short period of time, then he seems to relax, nodding to himself as he wanders back to the bed.

When Louis gets to the end of the mattress, he throws himself into Liam's arms, forcing Harry to spring to the side to make room for his beta. The alpha drops to the carpet, groaning noisily from the floor when we all chuckle at his mishappening. And when Harry gets up, rumbling about hyper-active betas at four in the morning, and we laugh even louder.

 

 

* * *

 

 

When Harry and I finally leave our room to, hopefully, get ready quickly enough to get to work on time, we are met with a surprise in the entrance way. Niall's just throwing on his coat, wearing a clean shirt and black skinny jeans. He has his boots on, and looks to be in almost as a rush as we are.

"Niall?" Harry asks softly, stopping on his way to the kitchen. I freeze behind the other alpha, and Niall terminates his movements as well, facing away from us, stock still.

"Going somewhere?" I finally get out through the lump in my throat. It feels a lot like betrayal, this situation, and I don't know how I'm supposed to react to it. Everything just feels cold.

"Work," Niall says, moving to look at us, but our omega doesn't meet our eyes. "I have the early shift."

It lifts a weight off my chest, and I let the air that I was holding in my lungs rush out into a sigh. Niall must think ill of it, because he scoffs and turns back to the door.

"Fine, don't believe me," he's saying, all huffy and reaking of annoyance and anger, and I don't know how to respond. It wasn't supposed to be like this. We were supposed to be  _okay_ , no more fighting. We're _mates_.

Except for, we aren't. Not really. We're mated, sure. But I don't feel the same love and connection to the blonde as I do to Liam, Louis, and Harry. And it's not supposed to be like that.  _Mates_ aren't supposed to feel that way. We're supposed to love each other more than anything else in the world. But looking at the rest of the pack, looking at Harry right this second, I know that we don't. And no one deserves that. 

Especially not Niall.

 

 

* * *

 

 

Louis

 

It's hot. So fucking hot, but it always is with Liam. The bump and grind of our hips under the thick comforter probably isn't helping, though. Nor is our panting, loud and invasive in the silent room. He's kissing down my neck, softly, like a fucking oxymoron to the rough way that our hips are thrusting together, and, as he's shifting a little to get a better angle, Liam's cock finds it's way to the crease of my arse, and holy fuck-

Someone starts yelling.

Liam springs up from on top of me on to his knees, the white sheet falling around him like a halo of sorts, and everything else blanks from my mind when I glance at his erect cock. It's thick and a harsh red, glistening wet from lube and pre-cum, and I want to swallow it down my throat, feel the throbbing of it on my tongue.

"Louis!" I'm snapped out of my visual fantasy when Liam growls a warning at me. I moan at the loss of his body heat when the beta completely removes himself from the bed, but it hits me like a freight train a moment after, and I realize suddenly why Liam pulled away.

All I can feel is the anger and worry and annoyance and embarrassment from my mates outside our room, and there's so many emotions and scents clouding my judgement and vision it's hard to listen to anything Liam's saying, but I try, tilting my head toward the sound of his voice and closing my eyes, trying to block out everything but my beta's voice.

"...fighting, Lou. We gotta' go try and help, 'k love?" He's questioning, and I'm nodding absentmindedly, attempting to block out the sudden surge of rage and protectiveness, with an underlying feeling of something I don't recognize. It's then when a pair of strong arms guide me into some baggy joggers that I finally open my eyes. Everything's confusing and weird, pheromones dancing around the entire house, and I bet even the rest of the block can smell it. But I'm up on my feet, lead by Liam (in the back of my mind I have a small thought of why isn't he affected by this, and then it floats away when the scent of bewilderment comes through) and we're out the door and into the living room.

When I can finally see clearly, I realize that Harry and Niall are screaming at each other, loud and totally unlike either of them (a voice in my head tells me that I don't even know Niall, I can't possibly tell if he's the type to get angry easily, but I ignore it). Harry's yelling something about protection and mates, how Niall shouldn't go because of the toll mating can take on someone's body. I'm inclined to listen to my alpha, mindlessly nodding along to his words while I watch the scene unfold. I'm still wrapped up in Liam's arms, and later I'll realize he was shaking so harshly we were jolting back and forth.

Niall's return comment includes something to do with sexism,  _well why the fuck do you get to and I don't? Cause I'm a fucking omega?_ and all goes still and quiet after. I still don't understand what's going on; why my pretty alpha is clenching his fists so hard they're vibrating, or why Liam is still holding me back. We should be helping our alphas, comforting them when they're upset. They  _need_ us, but the brunette who has a strong grip on my waist doesn't seem to think so.

"So that 's it, then?" Niall finally says to the noiseless room. It makes everyone tense, including Harry, and it makes me want to pull out of Liam's grasp, to run to my alpha and hug him and comfort him and  _love_ him, but I don't, because Niall, the stupid blonde, is speaking again. "'m an omega, so you just get ta decide my rights as a human bein'?"

No one says anything again, and it somehow makes it worse. The built up tension in the room makes me want to fall to my knees, but I stand, locked against Liam, waiting for a reaction.

Surprisingly, the omega gives first, slumping down from his straightened position. He looks defeated, eyes red and watery. If I didn't know he was the cause of my pack's problems, I would have felt pity for the small boy. Because that's how he looks right now. Probably just how Louis looked when his mom told him that she was getting a divorce. Small, boyish. _Broken_.

"Just go, then," the blonde's voice cracks, and I frown, not enjoying the utter hopelessness that comes with Niall's words. "Go to work and I'll stay. Whatever. Just go." And then he's walking past Liam and I, not one glance from the floor, and straight into the bathroom, closing the door quietly behind him.

 

 

* * *

 

 

It's a few hours after, when Liam and I are out getting groceries, our alphas finally getting to work (though their an hour and a half late) when I finally ask the question that's been burning in the back of my head.

"So, why was I more affected by the fight then you, Li?" I question bluntly, never one to let things build awkwardly until something blew over. Liam looks up from the bananas, a bit startled by my sudden curiosity. I stare at him, waiting as he blushes and stammers, collecting his thoughts. We've always been opposite in that aspect.

"Um, Harry's your alpha, right?" He starts, and I nod along, listening patiently. "Well, since he and, uh, Niall were the ones that were fighting, and not Niall and Zayn, my alpha, it affected you more."

I frown. "So, because my alpha was more involved in the fight, I got more involved?" It was weird, like nothing I've ever experienced before. Harry had a temper, yes, but I'd never seen it used on other people quite to that extent, so I'm still trying to wrap my head around why and how my body (and mind) reacted the way it did.

"Yes. That's also why you probably had some rude thoughts about Niall, yeah?" Liam asks, and I bend to grab some mushrooms, before nodding shamefully, not facing the other beta.

"Aw, Lou, it's okay. The only reason I have any clue about what I'm talking about is because Zayn got in a few nasty fights when we were younger. I felt the exact same way."

I spin back to Liam. "It's natural?" 

"Perfectly." He smiles, and I'm so relieved I jump into his arms, laughing as he spins me around in circles. We'll have to talk about Niall sooner or later, about what's going to happen, but I'm content to just stay in my love's hold, for the time being.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Confusion? Maybe? Probably. All will be revealed soon, don't worry. ;)
> 
>  
> 
> Thanks for reading! :)


	9. IIX

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ed pays a visit, and something unexpected happens.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooooooo sex. Heat sex. And, also, my first time writing full smut. Don't hate me.
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> (Also there is a shit load of Ziall in here. Not much else. Oops.)

 

Zayn

 

Niall's distant for the next few days. It's expected, given the situation, but that doesn't mean we like it. It's aggravating, and extremely hard to ignore, but we have to. At least, that's what we've - Harry, Liam, Louis, and I - agreed to. Give him space. Ignore it until Niall wants to talk to us. 

Never have I resented the thought of giving someone space more. 

And we know it's our fault. Somehow, it makes it ten-times worse, because we're the ones who caused this. Yet we don't change our actions. We don't stop hurting him.

You can't teach an old dog new tricks, I guess.

 

 

* * *

 

 

This morning doesn't seem any different then the others. Niall silently eats breakfast with Harry and I, and when we go to put our coats on to leave for work, he trails back to the guest bedroom, where he's been staying for the majority of his time here. Harry and I exchange a sour look as we walk to the door. He hates just as much as I do, but we know we shouldn't do anything about it. Probably. 

I'm about to reach for the door handle when it suddenly swings open, revealing a cheeky-looking red-head.

"Why hello," Ed greets us, large grin situated on his pale face. I give him a half-hearted smile, but he seems to ignore its lack of genuineness as he walks right past us into the living room.

"Was just passing by on my way to work lads. You're both a little early. Come sit and chat with me." Ed plops himself down onto the loveseat, smiling at the confused looks on our faces. But he's right, we're about an hour early, so we don't really have an excuse not to talk to him. 

Harry and I settle down on the couch opposite from the ginger, and listen as he says, "so I heard I'm the best match-maker in history? Will I be singing at your wedding?" He laughs.

Harry gives me a look, but I am facing Ed fully and don't acknowledge it. "How'd you find out?"

"Oh, well apparently the omega downgraded his work to part-time, and I maybe got it out of Perrie that it's because of some new men in his life." Ed winks, chuckling, and I'm starting to dislike this conversation.

"It's none of your business, Ed," Harry says, and I reach over and intertwine my fingers with his gratefully. 

"I set you guys up!" The beta exclaims, throwing his hands into the air. "I think I deserve some details, yeah?"

"No," I answer. "Our relationship, not yours. Butt out." I can feel Harry's anxiousness at the circumstances, and I squeeze his fingers in mine.

"Woah. Snappy. Is there something wrong?" Ed asks, leaning forward curiously. I roll my eyes at his pushiness.

"Again, Ed, it's none of your business. C'mon, we have to get to work." Harry tugs me up, and I follow him automatically. Ed looks peeved, but, truthfully, I couldn't care less at the moment.

We're just heading out the door, once again, when Niall wanders out into the living room. I curse under my breath.

"Ed?" Niall questions, a cute, confused pout on his face.

"Niall-"

"Hey you!" Ed cuts me off. "Long time no see! So, how's the sex life?" The ginger laughs. Niall, though, is pale-faced and surprised, looking over to us for answers. When no one says anything to help him respond, he spews something about 'needing to unpack' and runs back into the guest-room.

Ed looks at us with confusion and minor annoyance. "What the hell was that?"

"We may be having some...problems," Harry admits softly, leaning into my side. We're just outside the door, and I'm seriously contemplating making a break for it to avoid the rest of this conversation.

"Problems? What the fuck guys?" Ed fumes, and his face matches his hair. It would be funny if it wasn't scary. He's never acted like this before.

"Ed, please. Just. Let us explain later. We haveta' get to work." I close the door, giving my friend pleading eyes, and he finally nods. I can feel Harry's breath of relief on my neck.

As Harry and I are walking away, the red-head says one final comment. "You will tell me later though, Malik. He's my friend too."

 

 

* * *

 

 

Niall

 

I was fifteen when my first heat hit. It was short and the waves were sparse, but it was one of the most terrifying things I've ever experienced. 

My mom says I'm lucky; I was a late bloomer. I didn't have to deal with heats from the time I was eleven, like most omegas. But she didn't understand, not really. Mom is a beta. She has never experienced a heat, and the extreme physical and mental repercussions it has. Especially with someone like me, who was sheltered away from the world from a young age, and the only thing I knew about heats (and my biology in general) were from the classes I took in school when I was ten. And no one payed attention to those. Especially when you're sure you're going to be a beta. 

But I wasn't. And, again, unlike any alpha or omega when they present, I didn't get warning time. Usually when someone presents, they get from three days up to two weeks before their heat or rut hits. Getting your heat the day of your presentation isn't completely unheard of. It's just not very common. And on that day when I was fifteen, I realized why.

Our biology wasn't meant for us to get thrown into to something that we're not ready for. That's why we have time to prepare for everything, why our scents change and instincts get stronger a few days before everything. It's so we don't panic and hurt ourselves during something that should be pleasurable.

And that's what heats (and ruts) are. They're a time where we can let everything go. All the tension and strain and everything else we have held up inside of us leaves and we're left feeling peaceful and trouble-free. Even spending them alone should gives us some sort of comfort. Release. 

But all my first heat was was confusion and fear and pain and fire. I didn't understand. I didn't realize that it was natural. So I fought it with every ounce of my being. Refused to reach down under the sheets to touch myself, refused to go farther and feel where the heavy slick leaked from my hole. Because of that, I spent two of the worst days of my life writhing on my bed in agony and not knowing what to do about it. Helpless in every meaning of the word. 

It's a lot like what I'm feeling now. Because, like presenting warning you for what's to come, pre-heats are the grown-up version of that. A day or so before a heat, we start feeling warm all over, we get aroused easier, and our scent changes subtly. Not enough to attract a mate, but enough to tell. 

That doesn't happen today. I wake up from my nap hard and aching, warmth heavy in my lower stomach. I know almost immediately what's happening, and I groan as another spike of arousal rushes through my body. 

"Fuck," I murmur as I sit up, my length rubbing up against my trackies. I can already feel slick dampening up my legs and pants, and I groan loudly. My minds screaming  _alpha_ and _mates_ , but I ignore it because I know it's impossible, know my mates aren't here. They won't be here for a while, and even when they get here it doesn't mean anything. Just that it'll be more tempting to jump them. 

After a quick wank on the couch to take the edge off, I gingerly move to the guest bedroom. All of my stuff is in there, clothes, guitar,  _lube_ , and, yet, it still feels less like home then anywhere I've ever been.

I settle onto the bed on my stomach, moaning when my exposed cock makes contact with the sheets. Already, I can tell that it's going to be one of the most embarrassing situations I've ever experienced when my pack gets home, but at the moment I'm basking in the bliss of my heat. 

It's about an hour, or twelve, later when I hear the door open and close. Immediately, I can smell the scent of mate and confusion, but also arousal.  _Zayn's_ here. Why, I have no idea. But my body doesn't care, as I produce another bout of slick that runs down the back of my thighs.

"Niall?" I hear Zayn tentatively calling out to me, and I fight back the plea that I want to respond with.

"Yeah?" I answer with instead. It's silent, then footsteps that are coming towards the door.

"Ni, can I, uh, can I come in?" Zayn stutters out, and my breath wavers. Before I blurt out an affirmative, though, I think it through, measuring the pros and cons of everything (pro: sex with mate, con: possibly fuck up everything in my life), and ultimately make my decision. 

"Uh, yeah Zayn. Come in," I say. It takes a few seconds, but the alpha slowly swings open the door. He stares at my naked form stretched out across the sheets, and the blush that was already very prominent on my face quickly spreads to my neck and chest.

"Hi," Zayn says, and he's hard in his dress pants. It makes me warm all over; thinking that that's for  _me._   _I_ caused that. 

I gulp. "Hi."

"I uh-"

"Do you want to fuck me?" I interrupt Zayn's sentence, staring into his eyes and seeing them change at my words.

" _Please_."

 

* * *

 

 

Sometime later I'm laying on my back, fucking myself down on three of Zayn's skinny fingers, panting from the feeling of them pressed inside of me. Zayn's hovering over me, kissing my neck and occasionally leaving a small bite that I know will be a mark tomorrow. 

"Ready," I breathe out suddenly. "I'm ready, Zayn. Please." 

The alpha brings his head up so we're face to face, planting a deep kiss on my lips as he pulls his fingers out. I shudder, feeling the slick on his hand when he puts it onto my chest. With the other he reaches down, out of view. But I'm too focused on his tongue fucking my mouth to care.

His cock's suddenly up against my entrance, and I choke a little when there's a little pressure added to it.

"Shhh," Zayn coos. "Relax baby." 

I nod in agreement, wrapping my legs around the alpha's skinny waist, and loosen my muscles until I'm not clenched tight.

Zayn seems to notice exactly when this happens, and he starts pushing in. It doesn't hurt, surprisingly. It's just a foreign sensation. Not unwelcome.

Once he's bottomed out, my alpha looks at me with a small, comforting smile. I give him one back, and nod lightly to indicate that I'm okay. That this is okay. 

Zayn starts at a leisurely pace, a rough, slow drag inside me, and I squirm restlessly on top on the sheets, clenching my hands in the soft covers. He doesn't seem to notice my body language, because he keeps up on the relaxed speed, a little huffed breath every time he pushes in.

I let him for a few minutes, waiting for the faster thrusts that I think eventually will come, but they don't, and an impatient noise makes its way from my throat as I try to bare down on my alpha's cock.

Zayn growls automatically, moving one hand from my chest down to my hip, holding me still as he fucks in, excruciatingly slow.

My whole body is twitching with the effort of not moving too much, not upsetting Zayn and making him leave.  _He can't leave, stupid,_ my mind tells me,  _he's our mate. Our mate protects us. Our mate loves us and he won't leave._ But I've never really listened to my inner voice, my  _omega_ , so I lay as still as I can, soaking in the pleasure coming from the slow way my alpha's fucking me, hot breath against the side of my neck.

It's a few thrusts later - where I try my damn hardest to not move a muscle - when Zayn seems to realize something's wrong. He slows the movements of his hips, only letting shallow twitches come through every few seconds. Then he removes his hand from my waist, and I finally whine at his actions.

"Please," I breathe, hating the sound of my voice cracking in the middle of the word. I'm still not looking at him, my eyes clamped tight; scared to see the alpha's expression.

"Don't hold it in," Zayn mutters, startling me with how close he is to my ear. He juts his hips forward sharply, pressing fully against my arse, and I gasp, letting out a long, loud whine that fills the entire room. Zayn's hands move to grip back onto my hips, and I scramble a little a he gives me three more hard thrusts, a high whimper leaving my lips.

"That's it baby." My alpha shoves up into me again, steadying into a medium-pace. When I clamp my mouth shut once again, Zayn gives an extra hard thrust, getting a punched-out noise from my throat. "C'mon, don't hide it. Let it me hear you." 

I nod, blush feeling heavy on my cheeks, and relax into the mattress. It feels better after that, whenever Zayn moves I feel like fire is curling around in my stomach, and when he leans up and finds a new angle, we moan in sync, a gasp ripping from my mouth as he finds my prostate.

My orgasm approaches gradually, a heat winding and building inside me at every thrust. I'm moaning almost constantly now, meeting Zayn's hips at every push he makes inside me. It makes his thrusts harder, slamming into my spot with vigor every time. It makes slick squelch out around his cock, sliding hotly down both of our thighs, but I barely notice; focused on the way my alpha is bringing me up and closer to the edge.

It hits hard and suddenly, ripping through my entire body like I'm being run over by a freight train. I faintly feel a hand on my dick, stroking me through my orgasm, and I insanely grateful for it, since my body doesn't seem to want to move. It makes me feel all floaty and happy, like I don't have a care in the world, and I bask in the sensations for a few moments - minutes, hours maybe - until my vision clears. 

I open my eyes to face Zayn still hovering over my body, smiling painfully down at me. I realize why when I see his cock, all pink and wet and hard, standing erect against his stomach. 

I whine softly, wondering when my perfect alpha had pulled out of me. He shakes his head, whispering a  _it's fine love, don't worry 'bout it_ and, with my legs that somehow stayed firmly around my mate's legs through my orgasm, I yank him forward. Zayn lands pressed right up against me in every angle, and I whine again, trying my best to rut down on his hard cock.

"C'mon, please," I plead, and Zayn replies with a groan. "Z, please. Knot me." At that, his dark eyes turn black, and he lines up again, taking one more look into my eyes.

"You sure, babe?" He asks, and he doesn't even have to finish the sentence before I'm nodding vigorously, winding my arms around his neck and pulling him close. Zayn looses his balance and falls right on top of me, making me gasp with broken laughter. 

"Well that was sexy," the alpha mutters, and I giggle into the side of his face. We sit there in silence for a second, before I shift slightly and remember Zayn's  _hard,_ pressed up against the cleft of my arse. 

"You still wanna'..." I trail off, pushing my ass back onto his dick, evoking a breathy curse that makes a jolt of pride run through me. 

"Fuck, Ni, yeah 'course," Zayn says, and then he's pushing in again, and it feels like too much and not enough at the same time. I can feel my alpha's knot pushing needily against my rim, and I shove right back. Zayn moans loudly, hanging his head down against my shoulder. I can tell he's close; his thrusts faster and sloppy like he's chasing something. Like he needs something.

"Shit," he gives a small whimper as I clench down around him, thrusting once, twice, three times until he pushes his knot into me, biting down onto my neck as he comes. 

My cock gives a half-hearted twitch of interest, but I ignore it, focus mainly on stroking Zayn's sides as he trembles. He's still coming, generous spurts filling me up, and I sigh at the feeling of it. 

A minute later, when he's finally able to think straight, Zayn looks down at my half-hard dick. "You want me to..." He looks at me quizzically, slowly moving his hand towards my groin. I shake my head, giggling when Zayn lets out a loud yawn.

"Na', I don't think I could anyway," I say. "And you need ta' sleep."

"We're gonna' be tied together for a bit, babe," Zayn tries, but I can already see his brown eyes drooping sleepily. 

"'s fine. Go to sleep, love," I say. The alpha looks down at me, an appreciative smile spread across his face. He leans down and kisses me, and it's a light and thankful. I love it. 

We're interrupted when a loud bang shakes the house. Zayn's head bolts up, searching around the room for possible dangers ( _like a good alpha,_ my mind supplies) and comes short when he sees nothing. But I smell him, and I see the moment of shock when Zayn does as well.

"What the fuck?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So heats and ruts are a little different in this verse then I seem to see them in other A/B/O fics. They're less about "need to breed" (even though that plays a small part in it) and are more like a release for the person going through them. This also means that when alphas/omegas go through these they aren't just desperate and sex-driven and in a head space where they can't think straight. They can, they can think just as well as their normal-selves, and they can say no just as easily.
> 
> That also means that the partner going through it with them, but is not actually having a heat/rut, also isn't scent drunk. They can easily say no as well.
> 
> So when Zayn and Niall had sex it was fully consentual and they both could have said no if they wanted to.
> 
> (This is different for children when they both go through these things, because their minds aren't fully mature their body is less in control of what they ask for/what they do.)
> 
> Questions? I'll gladly answer them. It can be a bit confusing, I know. 
> 
>  
> 
> Thanks for reading! :)


	10. IX

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louis isn't happy. And more confusion. Surprise, surprise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> During the next two weeks I think I'm gonna go through all the old chapters and clean them up a bit. Nothing drastic will change, but some more details may be added, so I'll make sure to tell you if I think you should re-read anything.
> 
> P.S. - This chapter is a boatload of information but also confusion. That's okay, it's meant to be like that. Everything will come in time.
> 
>  
> 
> Updated: 06/03/2016

 

 

Louis

 

 

I realize I forgot my phone halfway through my shift, rummaging through my bag with one child on my hip and another hanging off of my leg. I work at a place called Just Ducky Daycare, just a couple blocks from our house. It's a quaint establishment, with only two full rooms and one attached bathroom, but it's been like my second home since the end of year 11, when I started working here. 

I've always had a way with kids, and growing up with five little sisters and a little brother probably contributed to that. I looked after them a lot when I was younger, so you’d think I would have had enough with childcare and children after all of those years, but for some reason I still love it, and them, just as much. 

Harry, Liam, Zayn and I have talked about the possibility of children in the future, but none of us were totally into it for a near date. Firstly, because even though we all want kids, Liam and I are only able to get pregnant from each other, not from our alphas, and I know that Liam has never wanted to carry a child. And male alphas can’t get pregnant, so the only possibility would be me. And I’m pretty sure I’m not even close to be ready to have a pup, not counting the history of twins in my family. So, we waited.

But now we have an omega. And that kind of changes everything.

“Ou-ee!” Raylyne, a little three-year-old girl, calls out to me from across the room. I look up from trying to remove George, a small six-year-old, from my leg, and see Raylyne’s predicament. She can’t reach one of the toys on a high shelf, and she’s staring cutely up at it, like it’ll magically come down if she wants it enough. 

I carefully disconnect George from my body, and make my way towards the little girl who wants her toy.

 

 

* * *

  
  
  


During my lunch break, instead of staying at the daycare, like I normally do, I head home to grab my phone. Zayn called me a few hours earlier (“Zayn! You fucking know you can’t call me on the daycare phone! I could get fired! This is only for work.” “Sorry babes.”), saying Harry was stuck with a pile of work, but he himself could come home too if I wanted. I agreed.

Except, apparently luck isn’t in my favour, because, ten minutes before I get to leave, one of my co-workers calls in sick. What that means is that I have to take my lunch shift an hour late, waiting for my boss to show up and take over.

The best (and weirdest) part is that Zayn isn’t picking up his phone, so I can’t even warn him that I won’t be there.

By the time I finally leave, I’m in a terrible mood, probably stinking up the place with unhappy pheromones. I know Zayn won’t be there, and he’s probably pissed that I didn’t show, and that makes my mood even more sour. Because that means we’re probably going to argue later about how I  _ shouldn’t fucking forget my phone, don’t you know it’s important if we need to contact you  _ and that’s not going to be very enjoyable either.

The walk to the house is short, but unenjoyable. There’s a small family of eleven,  _ eleven _ , in front of me, who, naturally, can’t walk faster than the speed of waddling ducks. And the construction that’s happening across the street makes it so I can’t cross the street and walk on the other side of the road. So I’m stuck slowly ambling behind the beta couple, an alpha, two omegas, and their tiny, dark-haired children.

It suddenly reminds me of when Zayn’s family and mine first met; the amount of small children running around the back yard was insane. Gemma, Harry’s older sister, was there as well, and adding them all together, we had a total of eight siblings between the three of us, plus Zayn’s two cousins. It makes my heart almost stop, when I realize that was almost ten  _ years _ ago. I haven’t seen Zayn’s parents since.

When I finally arrive home, I can tell something is off the moment I walk onto our property.. It smells of sex and ecstasy, but most of all, our entire property  _ reeks  _ of heat. And not unsatisfied heat either. It’s content, relaxed and sated. Like the omega is happy and cuddled up with their mate and  _ no. _ That’s  _ not _ okay.

I rush to the door, throwing it open and coming face to face with the  _ disgusting  _ scent of one of  _ my alphas _ mating an omega. The smell is so repulsive it’s making my eyes water, and as I step into the living room, slamming the door behind me, it only gets worse. 

The moment they realize it’s me I can tell; joining the nauseating odor that already plagues the room is confusion and worry. I can hear Zayn’s growling from inside the guest bedroom.

_It’s_ Zayn _, not Harry._ _It’s not your alpha, it’s okay._

(Faintly, a memory of Harry and me as teenagers, still just pups, plays in the back of my mind.

_ I promise, Lou. I’ll never do it again.  _

_ I’m so sorry baby.  _

_ I promise. _

Then crying, and pain. So much pain. 

_ I never wanted to hurt you.  _

Zayn and Liam, tearfully watching as we scream at each other. Heads bowed together. Ashamed.

_ I’m sorry. _ )

“What the fuck?” I yell into the silent house.

 

 

* * *

  
  
  


Niall

  
  


Louis rushes into the room just moments after, red-faced and stinking of hatred and jealousy. It makes me want to cower into Zayn’s chest, because the beta’s expression was filled with abhorrence, and it was all directed at me. Like I planned to completely ruin his life.

Zayn isn’t too fond of Louis’ reaction either, if his growl of defiance says anything. We’re still locked together, naked and wrapped around each other’s bodies, but that just seems to agitate Louis more, as he lets his eyes travel over our figure, a feral, almost disturbing look of anger in his eyes.

Zayn lets out another warning snarl, but, to our astonishment, Louis gives one right back. It makes Zayn freeze and stare at the beta in shock, which gives Louis the opportunity to stride forward until he’s behind Zayn and out of my sight. I can still feel his creeping eyes on my body though, and I instinctively curl myself into Zayn’s chest, trying not to be seen. 

My alpha follows Louis with his eyes, turning his neck, then body, until he’s tugging on the quickly deflating knot inside me. I unintentionally whine at the feeling, my body telling me that we’re not ready to let go yet, as a spike of pain comes shooting up my back.

“Sorry, babes, sorry,” Zayn says softly, turning away from Louis to look at me. I give him a weak reassuring smile, trying to fight back the stinging in my eyes.

Louis apparently doesn’t want to be ignored, even for a second, because he growls again. It makes Zayn’s soft expression turn to annoyance and anger, but as he talks to Louis his eyes stay focused on me.

“Louis, please. Just let my knot go down and I’ll talk to you,” the alpha begs, leaning his head down tiredly into the curve of my neck. From the angle I’m in now I can see Louis’ head, and how it’s still stubbornly standing in the same place. 

When the beta still hasn’t moved, Zayn heaves out a large sigh onto my collarbone, and says, “Lou, baby please.  _ Please _ .” The way Zayn whines out the last word, like he’s too emotionally exhausted to even hold a conversation, must be the reason Louis silently backs out of the room. 

“Fuck,” Zayn whispers when the beta is finally out of earshot. I can feel him relax a little, and I wind my arms around his back, trying to find comfort from my alpha.

“I know,” I say back, nuzzling into his dark hair. I can tell Zayn doesn’t want to talk about it, that he doesn’t want to tell me why Louis was so pissed off, so I let it be, pulling him tighter into my body and counting down the seconds until I have to let go.

 

 

* * *

  
  
  


Harry and Liam show up about an hour later, finding me slouching drowsily on the loveseat. Zayn and Louis are talking (arguing) in the master bedroom, and they have been for that past forty minutes. It’s aggravating at best; to know that people are talking about you but you’re not allowed to listen.

Harry seems to understand right away, not asking any questions as he walks to the couch and relaxes into the spot beside me. I immediately melt into his side, nose buried in his neck, and sigh in relief at the sense of calm and love (not like, love love; that’d be absurd) that Harry radiates at the moment. 

As much as I hate it, as much as I want to pull away from Harry and not talk to him or be near him or listen to his stupid unintentionally sexist comments, I can’t move. Because my other alpha - who’s still sexist, mind you - isn’t here. Well, he’s here. But he’s not with me. And that physically hurts.

Harry makes that a little better, bringing his strong arms around my waist and pulling me close. It takes away the burning sensation on my skin, and helps the pounding headache that makes it feel like my skull is cracking in half. 

But small shivers still wrack my body, continually making my teeth clatter and my body jolt. I valiantly try to hide it, coughing every few minutes and moving as little as possible to try to keep them at bay.  If Harry notices, he doesn’t say anything. Just pulls me closer, if that’s even physically possible.

Liam, however, sees right through me. “You’re going through withdrawal, aren’t you?” The beta says as he lowers himself onto the floor in front of me. I can feel Harry’s confusion, but I decidedly ignore it.

I chuckle morbidly, saying, “yeah, I guess. At least it’s not, like, heroin withdrawal.” I laugh again, with no emotion attached to it. 

Both of my mates are staring at me, concern evident. But I can’t look at either of them. Can’t see the pity in their eyes.

“Liam,” Harry breaks the silence, “what’s withdrawal?”

“You know how you were taught in sex ed class to always hold and cuddle your omega after knotting?” I answer, before Liam has the chance to. I feel Harry nod from above me, so I continue. “There’s a reason for it. Cause’ if you don’t hold and protect the omega, they go through withdrawal, or, basically, my-body-is-going-to-shut-down-and-destroy-any-pups-created-during-sex.”

“It’s because and omega’s body needs to feel that it has a strong mate that can protect itself and it’s pups. So, if it feels like it doesn’t, it...expels any children made,” Liam adds, and I hum in agreement. Harry shifts a little, and the hand on my back starts tapping out an off-beat rhythm.

“Well, good thing you can’t get pregnant then,” Harry says, a nervous, awkward laugh making its way out of his mouth. The sentence makes me gasp, jolting up and away from Harry’s grip. Then, a large shiver that wracks my entire body runs through me, and I scoot as far away as I can, while still sitting on the loveseat.

Concern for me spikes in the other two in the room, but I’m not paying attention. All I can hear is a mantra playing inside my head.

_ No. _

_ I’m not- _

_ No. _

_ It’s not possible. _

_...but it is. _

_ NO! _

“Niall? You _ are _ on the pill, right?” Harry questions. But I’m still frozen, just staring down at my lap in shock and appallment. Harry grabs my face with his big hands, cradling it like he would a child, and turns it so I’m face to face with him. “Right? Niall."

And, hesitantly, I shake my head.  
  
  


 

* * *

 

Liam  
  


 

It takes a few seconds for it to set in. The fact that Niall  _ isn’t on a pregnancy pill _ , and what that means. 

“Shit,” I breathe out, still staring at the omega in disbelief. He won’t look at either of us, and jerked out of Harry’s hands the minute Niall admitted his secret.

Harry rises to his feet, and stalks out of the room. Niall  stands as well, but instead of following Harry into the master bedroom, he goes towards the front door, and before I can say a word, he’s gone.

  
  


* * *

 

 

When Niall finally comes back, it’s past one in the morning. Zayn’s passed out on the couch, and Harry on the floor. We had tried to convince them to go to bed, but our alphas were both very adamant to stay right where they are.

I’m in the middle of thanking Louis for calling Harry and I as soon as he could, when Niall walks through the door. He’s soaking wet and shivering, and there’s a small, damp plastic bag hanging from his left hand. 

Quietly, so to not wake the slumbering alphas, Louis and I guide him from the living room into the bathroom, saying nothing. Waiting for the omega to explain. Once inside, Niall strips down to his underwear, and, before I can turn away, he slips that off too. Weirdly, I thought he would be one of the shy ones, but I guess that’s not the case.

Niall turns around after he steps into the shower, and notices us staring.

“What?” Niall snarks, but I notice it’s aimed towards Louis. “It’s not like you haven’t seen it before.” And then Louis’ looking sheepish, and holy shit do I need a rundown of what happened earlier.

But not right now, because Niall’s still shivering his ass off and that’s more important than the politics of our relationship, or lack of. 

I quickly show him how to use the hot water, and then Louis and I wander back into the living room, where I notice the plastic bag still sitting by the doorway, a small puddle surrounding it.

Feeling like a terrible person, I sneak towards the bag and grab it, handing it to Louis, who tosses the plastic away, revealing two small boxes. One is pink, and has a clear labelling of ‘H-STOPPERS’, or the leading brand in pills that, well, stop your heat. The top of that box is already opened. 

The second box is something I’ve seen before, but only on tv shows and movies. It a long blue plastic container, that has a picture of a pregnancy test on the side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading. <3


	11. X

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zayn breaks down, and the pack comes to an unlikely decision.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, the only chapters I've really changed a significant amount to are last chapter, and the prologue. So if you want to go re-read those you can, but, really, there aren't that many changes, and nothing that changes the plot. So if you don't want to, then it's fine and you won't really miss anything.
> 
> This chapter is also very heavily focused on Zarry. Soz.

 

 

Harry

  


Zayn and I go back to work the next day. The first half is full of dull office work, and I fully immerse myself into it, if only to forget about what has happened in the past 24 hours. Zayn seems to be doing the same, as I don’t feel any stray emotion from him for a while. And then lunch rolls around.

I walk to the alpha’s office, like I normally do at this time everyday. I’m stopped a few times by some of my co-workers for a chat, but it doesn’t deter me from my destination.

When I step through the door, closing it softly behind me, I’m suddenly pushed back against it. Immediately my hackles rise and I’m ready to throw off the heavy body that’s pressed against me, but then Zayn’s nose is nuzzling into my neck, and his breath is harsh and loud, and I deflate.

“Cameras,” Zayn breathes, squeezing me tight around the waist and repeating the same word a few more times. I’m confused, don’t understand what he means, why he’s so worked up and off-kilter like this, but then I remember that our boss installed new security equipment all around the building last week, and that includes cameras in all of the offices and hallways.

I nod against the side of Zayn’s head, showing him that I concur. “The toilet doesn’t have ‘em,” I murmur. The alpha makes a quiet, high-pitched noise of acknowledgement, and I take that as agreement. We wait a few minutes, my arms coming around Zayn’s shoulders to pull him closer, willing the dark-haired man to calm down enough for us to at least move to the only place in the building where we’re not being recorded.

We, surprisingly, make it without a hitch. The hallway is weirdly deserted, but it makes our journey to the toilet that much easier, and I’m not complaining. I’m sure that almost everyone on our floor, and maybe in the entire structure, can smell Zayn’s distress, since it’s so potent and strong, but I know that no one will comment on it. For one, it’s rude to scent people who aren’t family or friends, and also, people who work here are pretty private, I’ve worked here long enough to know that. They are the ‘we leave you alone, you leave us alone’ types. It definitely benefits us now.

The second we enter the loo, Zayn rushes to the toilet seat and settles down beside it, shivering on the floor. I’m left standing near the doorway, confused and unsettled, but trying to make light of the situation.

“I thought Niall was the one who was supposed to be having morning sickness,” I joke half-heartedly, chewing on my lip when Zayn winces. “Or is that a little too soon?”

“That’s not funny, Harry,” the alpha responds, shuddering violently before leaning over the toilet and vomiting into it. I make a small noise of concern, taking a few steps toward Zayn before leaning down and stroking a hand through his hair and down his shaking back.

“You been like this all day?” I question, hushed and soft. When Zayn is finally finished, he leans against me, nodding against my shoulder. “I’m surprised,” I say, “thought you’d be happy more than anything.” And yeah, maybe that was a little harsh.

“What do you mean?” Zayn asks in a hushed voice, but it looks likes he already knows the answer. His eyes are pulled to the floor, face tight in a grimace. I exhale slowly through my nose. I’m trying to think of a way to broach this topic without pissing either of us off, but it proves to be difficult as the silence in the room stretches out, twisting around us like a virulent fog.

“Would you, like, actually mind if, say, Niall actually had your pups?” I finally get out, speaking slowly and thinking hard for the words to say. The other alpha’s face morphs into a scowl, pulling away from my grip, and I can see his hands moving into fists at his sides. So I hastily backtrack.

“But babe, just think about it!” Which also is the wrong thing to say, and Zayn scoffs incredulously. I wince, trying to explain myself further, but my attempts are futile.

“You don’t think I haven’t?” Zayn fumes. He stands and starts pacing in the tiny space, brushing against me every time he turns. His scent’s all ruffled and aggravated, and maybe just a little anxious. It’s disconcerting, to say the least.

“For the last twelve hours it’s all I _can_ think about!” He finally stops his movements, back facing me and head tilted down towards the sink. Zayn’s hand are pale from grasping the counter, and, even though his face is hidden, I can imagine the pained expression on the alpha’s features. I’ve seen it enough times in my life to have it memorized.

I wait a long minute for Zayn to elaborate on his statement, but he never does. Just stands, looking away, silent.

“Zayn, babe, it’s okay to want this,” I try quietly, taking miniature, muted steps toward my mate. He lets out a harsh breath when I finally reach his side, back hunching and curling tighter into himself.  I feel an icy stab in my chest when I see, and feel, the frustration in Zayn turn to fear and panic. It makes a whimper pass through my lips, seeing my beautiful, strong mate break down like this. Because he’s not supposed to. We’re not supposed to be weak.

Maybe there are downfalls of being an alpha.

“He could be, you know.” I almost don’t hear it, his voice is so low. But I do, and I don’t know how to respond. So we stay in silence, Zayn anxiously tapping his fingers against the counter-top, still refusing to meet my gaze. I’m still but my mind is whirling, trying to make sense of everything, trying to think of an adequate response.

“I know,” I say dumbly instead. I can almost see Zayn rolling his eyes at me, so I cut him off before he can say the snarky comment I know is coming after. “But it doesn’t have to be a bad thing.”

Zayn shifts, looking uncomfortable, before finally looking up and into my eyes. “But it is, Haz. I’m not 23 yet! Niall is 22! Neither of us are even close to being ready for a kid.” He sighs, leaning against the tiled wall, fully facing me. “Not to mention you, Louis, and Liam.”

I frown. “What about us?”

The alpha’s tired eyes remove them self from my gaze. “If, well, if he is, like, _pregnant_ .” Zayn has to force the word from his mouth. “Our betas aren’t gonna’ be happy. You know that.” His eyes go all dark and sad, and it makes me want to pull him into my arms and reassure him that _everything would be okay, always_. But I restrain myself. Because we need to talk about this, and I have a bad feeling that I’ll fuck something up if I say anything now.

“And, like, even though you’re being supportive now, instincts and shit happen and you’re gonna’ end up upset too,” Zayn continues. He threads a hand with long, skinny fingers through his hair, and I immediately feel the need to calm his nervousness that I can feel building, and just make sure that everything is okay.

(Or course, it isn’t. But I can pretend.)

“Liam is going to be supportive of you, no matter what, Zayn. He’s your _beta_. He’ll follow you to the ends of the Earth,” I say, and I can see Zayn’s reluctant agreement at the statement.

“And Louis...may be a bit tougher,” I admit, “but he’ll come around. He always does.” And I can tell that Zayn doesn’t believe that one though, by the way his head dips low and he says nothing, but I know I can deal with that later.

“As for me,” I start. “Well. I can’t promise instincts won’t be a factor in this. And I can’t promise that I’ll always seem as supportive as I am because of those instincts, but I can promise that this is an _exciting_ thing, Zayn. Yes, we may not have talked about it, and yes, we may be way too fucking young to deal with something like this, but we can’t change that now. And, love, I know how much you’ve always wanted kids.”

I smile, because I can immediately tell that my argument was valid, and that it worked. Zayn already looks a bit looser than before, relaxing a little into the wall he’s leaning on.

“Yeah, I do like kids,” the man respires, closing his eyes. When the dark brown colour of them is revealed again, though, I have to hold back a whine at the reluctant sadness in them. That’s not how they’re supposed to look, especially when this had supposedly turned into a uplifting conversation.

“But it won’t work,” he finishes. I feel frustration at his words, but I hold back the snappy remarks and instead try to think of something polite to say, that won’t make either of us want to rip each other's heads off.

“C’mon, babe, you just admitted to me that you want this, so how can you say that it won’t work?”

“Yeah, I want it,” he sighs, “but Niall might not.”

And. Right. There’s that.

 

 

* * *

  
  


Liam

  


After putting the pregnancy test back where we found it last night, Louis and I had taken Zayn and Harry to bed. Said alphas had groaned groggily about needing to talk to their omega, still half asleep and confused. But we didn’t relent, and after a few minutes of arguing, the two men ended up nodding off under the covers of our bed. Neither Louis nor I would - or could - fall asleep with them, no matter how much we wanted to curl up in their arms. So we waited mutely in the living room, the fingers we had curled together was the only part of us touching.

When Niall finally emerged he had a long, grey towel wrapped around his skinny waist, dirty-blond hair damp and flat on his forehead. I couldn’t help myself but stare, eyes trailing over his skinny, pale legs, up past his small protruding stomach and nipples, settling on his neck. It’s scarred with two almost-identical bite marks; one on the left, high up near his chin, and another on the right, but more towards the front, low near his collarbone.

It was oddly erotic, seeing my mates’ mark on the omega’s neck. It should release jealousy inside of me, a fiery, red-hot feeling that I shouldn’t like. But it didn’t, and I did like it. And, at the time, all I could think about is maybe wrapping Niall up in my arms and pushing him face-first into a wall, trailing my teeth down his back until the spot is perfect and then snapping my mouth onto the meaty parts of his hips and. And then maybe I could leave a mark of my own.

But. No. That’s weird. And it’s not like Niall would want it anyway.

So Louis and I just sat, waiting for what, we didn’t know. Whatever it was, we didn’t get it, though, and I realized that when I watched Niall walk away into the guest bedroom, towel swaying with every step of his hips. He had left the bag in the living room, almost like it was purposeful. And I’m not sure what that means, but the bag is still sitting there in the late afternoon of the next day, untouched and seemingly forgotten.

 

 

* * *

 

 

We all had work today, even Niall, who had asked tonelessly at breakfast if he was allowed to go, and no one had put up a fight against it. I could tell Harry wanted to, but I also knew that he didn’t have a valid reason for wanting Niall to stay home, even though his first reason a couple of days ago wasn’t very valid either.

And Zayn. Well, Zayn didn’t talk much at breakfast. Louis and I were unusually eating with them at the same time because of our schedules at work, and, most of the time, whenever something like this happens and we have more time with each other, our alphas are all over us. But something was wrong this morning. Because even though Harry was normal - or at least tried to act like it - and coddled Louis and I with affection, Zayn avoided any physical contact, and refused to talk farther than one or two-word answers.

Niall had even accidentally bumped into my alpha on his way out the door, and Zayn had flinched away from the touch so fast he lost his balance and crashed into the wall. Niall had apologized a few times, but Zayn brushed him off, leaving the situation as quick as he possibly could. And when Niall left in a black truck, the property of his boss, his scent was all fucked up and anxiously sad. Like he couldn’t understand what he did wrong.

I think it’s the first time I’ve ever empathized with him.

 

 

* * *

  


 

Work is boringly uneventful. Not that working in an office ever is eventful. I’m just happy to leave and call a taxi to for a ride home.

Louis and Niall are the only ones waiting for me when I get there, and, surprisingly, they’re sitting together on the couch. They aren’t close together by any means, but Niall’s has a smile on his face, the first one I’ve seen in awhile, and it’s refreshing. Especially when I can feel both of their relaxed, happy auras. It puts me in a good mood almost instantly.

Their conversation wavers and then fades out when they see me, though, and that’s not something I want. So I give a small smile to the omega, who looks a little uncomfortable now that I’m here - which is just _great,_ really - and wander off to the master bedroom to change into comfortable sweats.

As I’m pulling on my shirt, I hear Harry and Zayn come in, but the exchange doesn’t quiet again. If anything, it gets louder. I cautiously pry into my packs emotions, trying to see if there are any arguments happening, but the only negative emotion I can feel is a little nervousness coming from, well, everyone. Besides that, it doesn’t seem to be a bad conversation, and I rush out of the bedroom, embarrassingly aching to be apart of it.

I find a surprising, but not unpleasant, sight when I enter the living room. Niall and Louis are still sitting in their same place on the couch, but Zayn and Harry are sitting across from them. And they’re having a _civilized_ conversation. It boggles my mind.

Harry reads me easily and laughs. It’s not meant to be rude; it’s just how Harry is. I find that a little reassuring as well.

“You look so shocked, babes,” Zayn says, giving me a weak smile. It makes my knees weak, not just because of the facial expression, but because I can tell Zayn has been through hell today, just by seeing his sickly face, and I want to curl up in his lap and kiss him and make everything better. But my alpha, reading my emotions, shakes his head softly, discreetly. _Later,_ his actions say. And yeah, I guess I can do that.

It doesn’t stop me from gliding over to him, though, squishing into the tiny space between the two alphas. They both throw an arm around me, but I lean into Zayn, comforting him silently.

“We were just talking about something, before you guys came,” Louis says after a moment, addressing the three of us. Niall stays quiet.

“Yeah? What about?” Harry prompts, twisting his long fingers through a small hole in the shoulder of my shirt.

The beta shifts around a bit, looking to Niall, and then back at us a few times. “It’s, uh, come to my attention that we don’t really know Nialler here very well.” He places his hand on Niall’s knee, and said man’s eyes settle on it, still not saying a word. “Think we should change that.”

“Can’t say you’re wrong, babe.” Harry, again. “But what exactly do you have in mind?”

“Well, we could kick it old school,” Louis says cheekily. “Dinner and a movie sound alright to you guys?”

“A date,” I contemplate. “I think it’s perfect.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just an FYI: Christmas doesn't exist in this universe. If you were wondering why they never celebrated it, that's why (and there's a good reason for it so don't yell at me).
> 
> Thanks for reading!!!


	12. XI

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Date night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im a terrible person.

 

 

Zayn

 

 

Liam and I are eight when we meet, completely becoming the phrase ‘young and stupid’.

Huh. Maybe ‘becoming’ isn’t the right word. 

I’d probably use: completely (butchering-all-of-our-ties-with-everyone-because-we-were-so-obsessed-with-each-other-that-we-didn’t-know-how-to-deal-with-other-relationships-never-mind-our-own) perfecting the phrase ‘young and stupid’.

Sounds a little more accurate.

And, really, it’s not that we were dumb kids. Liam himself received very high marks in all of his classes as a kid (me, not so much), but we weren't weak-minded people, per say. We just made some stupid decisions.

The first one was Harry.

 

_ “Liam and I are gonna’ head to Harry’s house,” I say to my mom, hustling around my room and looking for my jacket. _

_ My mom clears her throat, and, when I turn to face her, she holds up my black coat in her hand.  _

_ I smile sheepishly, thanking her quietly and taking it into my arms. It’s then, when I turn and move to leave, that my mom stops me. _

_ “You said Harry, right?” She questions. I huff, instincts telling me to stomp my feet and growl a little. I want to see Liam, and it makes Liam happy to visit Harry, so I want to go. Now.  (Even after the accident that happened a few weeks ago. But Harry’s probably over it anyway.) But I know temper-tantrums and displaying dominance never works for my beta mom, so I answer her question in affirmative, opening the door and taking a step before I’m stopped.  _ Again.

_ “Like Harry Styles? Anne’s son?” My mom asks another stupid question, and I roll my eyes.  _ What other Harrys do I know?

_ “Yes, duh, mom. Can I go now?” I turn to face her for the last time, ready to say goodbye, when I see her troubled expression. It makes me freeze on the spot. Because my mom doesn’t pull that look. Ever. _

_ “Harry and his family are gone, love,” she says cautiously, stepping towards me gently, arms outstretched, like I’m going to break if she touches me.  _

_ I just might. _

_ “They moved a month ago,” my mom tells me, and gives me a look filled with pity as she stops to stand ahead of me. But I barely see it, or hear the rest of her explanation.  _

_ Harry’s been gone a  _ month.  _ And I hadn’t even known.  _

Neither did Liam,  _ I remind myself. _

_ It makes my stomach twirl, and I feel light-headed at the thought of it. I can vaguely hear a concerned, high-pitched voice somewhere in the background of my thoughts, but I lose it absently, and slip into unconsciousness. _

 

“Zayn! Stop fretting so much!” Liam calls to me from the other side of the bedroom. I scowl at the mirror in front of me, then turn and face the same expression to my beta. He giggles lightly, like it's fucking  _ hilarious  _ that I'm getting anxious over something. 

Liam must feel my mood change, because after a moment, his grin lowers until it has dropped off of his face.

“Oh, alpha,” Liam says, walking to me and putting his big hands on my cheeks. I roll my eyes and shrug him off, swerving around until my back is facing my beta. I can feel his confusion and disappointment, but I can’t deal with it. So I walk out of the bedroom, bumping into Niall on the way down the hall.

“Sorry! Sorry,” the omega says politely, swerving around my unbalanced-body and into the living room. After getting my bearings straight, I follow him. 

Our path leads to the open room, where Louis and Harry are sitting together on the loveseat, squished tightly into each-other's personal space. I smile lightly at the two; glad that they are able to show affection now. It didn’t used to be like that.

Louis welcomes Niall into the room with open arms. The beta springs away from Harry’s grip and into Niall’s, and, although he looks a little confused, the blond seems to accept the hug happily, wrapping his pale arms tightly around Louis’ neck. I hear Harry’s pleased hum from behind the two, and I give one of my own. There’s something satisfying, and equally arousing, about the way our mates fit together.

I come up behind Louis, who is still wrapped tight around the omega, and encase his lithe waist in arms, nestling my nose into the back of his neck. I bump my face into Niall’s hands playfully, curling my fingers into his round stomach, laughing into the back of Louis’ head when the blonde jumps a little, trying to veer around my curious hands. 

“Ticklish?” Harry asks needlessly, as Niall hops again because of the assault my hands are doing to his belly. Everyone laughs, and it’s nice. Feels normal.

But then Louis is pulling Niall closer to him by his hands on the omega’s hips, and my hands land flat against Niall’s stomach. I yank them away, fighting everything in my being to push impossibly closer, but it was done before it even started.

 

_ “A month?” Liam yells, incredulous. He looks frantic, hands constantly moving to his hair, face, mouth, scratching down his exposed arms.  _

_ “Liam stop,” I order, though I put little dominance into the words. Nonetheless, Liam complies, sitting and placing his fidgety hands into his lap. I can still see his thoughts racing a thousand miles a minute, though, and I sigh heavily.  _

_ This doesn’t happen often; where we get to the point that I have to use my alpha voice on him. I’ve always despised it, and that’s also why I never put Liam into drops. We are equals. I shouldn’t have to treat him as less because I have a higher place in society.  _

_ It upsets me, watching as my beta lowers his head into submission after a few moments, thinking that he’s done something wrong, that I’m mad. He shouldn’t have to feel like that. No one should. _

_ I move to my knees then, sinking to the ground, gratefully ignoring how weak it makes me look in front of Liam. The brunette looks surprised, but he still greets my slumped form with a halfhearted smile, and an outstretched arm.  _

_ “How long have you known?” My beta asks after I’ve settled at his feet, with my head on his leg. It’s a weird feeling, since our positions are normally switched, but I just nuzzle father into his clothed thigh. _

_ “Mom told me yesterday.” _

_ “Don’t lie to me,” Liam calls out my bluff, but he doesn’t sound mad. Just tired. It seems like it’s been hours since he was upset, not minutes. _

_ I say, “sorry,” though I’m not really. Liam strokes a hand through my hair. “It was a week ago, when we were supposed to go to his house.” _

_ “When you told me you were sick, so we couldn’t go?” I nod, though I know that Liam already knows the answer. _

_ “I’m sorry,” I apologize again, when the silence has settled and it’s too much, like I’ve failed him, them both, somehow. Maybe I have. _

 

 

* * *

 

 

Liam   
  


 

Walking out from the hallway and into the living room, I stand noiselessly, taking in the image presented to me. 

Niall, Louis, and Zayn are all standing in the middle of the room, just looking around, avoiding each-other’s faces. I shoot Harry a confused look, but he just gives me a shrug and a shake of his head in return.

“Ready to go?” I question nervously, still trying to swim through the tense atmosphere in the room. My words seem to snap the three out of their thought, since Louis’ head whips up to me, a troubled, unnatural smile sent my way.

“‘Course,” he says, the others shaking their head in assent. I notice, quite obviously, that Niall and Zayn avoid getting even a foot near each other as we get ready to leave, and finally walk out the door. It’s not hard to miss, how awkward and tense the mood seems to be between them. So, only feeling the littlest bit guilty, I quickly change cabs with Harry, so instead of Niall in the car with two betas, he gets Louis and Harry. Believe what you will, but they can be quite a fright together. In more ways than one.

Sending the omega a small apologetic look, through the window of his cab, I get into my own, settling into the seat beside Zayn. He gives me a sideways glance, and I hold back the whine in my throat.

“So? What happened?” I ask softly, leaning into Zayn. He frowns, wrapping an arm around my shoulders - to take or to give comfort, I don’t know - and pulling me close. He smells of lavender and pine, and maybe a little of something else. A scent I discovered when we were just children. It’s just how he smells, and it’s unlike anything I’ve ever known.

My alpha asked me to describe it once, cuddled up to me in our bed, just a few months before Louis and that whole fiasco. I unable to do it; couldn’t describe the aroma that flowed from Zayn, no matter how hard I tried, or how much I buried my face into the curve of his neck.

My mom says the scent is love. Louis says he smells it too, but with Harry. Says he thinks it’s just our bodies reacting to our alphas. I’ve never really decided my opinion on the subject.

“I put my hands on his stomach,” Zayn says. It takes me a minute to process it, and, as I do, I take Zayn’s skinny fingers into my own, stroking over his knuckles softly, like I’ve always done.

“Is that a problem?” Curious for the answer, but not enough to let it bleed into the tone of my voice, I speak clearly and lightly, trying to get him to open up. It usually isn’t this hard.

Despite my efforts, Zayn still shoots me a dirty look, yanking his hand away from mine. “You know it is,” he tells me. “And you know why.”

“Okay,” I say, “I’ll add that to the things we need to talk about tonight.” My alpha grimaces at that, opening his mouth to reply, but I make I ‘shhh’ noise, smiling cheekily Zayn gives me a dirty look.

“Don’t be mad, love,” I tease, “it’ll have to happen sooner or later. You know that.”

“That doesn’t mean I want it to happen tonight,” the alpha retorts, but settles back against me, giving in and leaning his head on top of mine.

“Promise,” Zayn says, swallowing thickly. We’re right outside the restaurant, and I can see the nerves starting to kick in in my alpha. “Promise you won’t be mad.”

I’m addled. “Mad about what? Z, did something happen?”

“Yeah,” he says bitterly, “I slept with our omega, and now he’s probably pregnant. Everything’s great.”

“Our omega?” I question, trying to hide my grin in Zayn’s shirt.

He doesn’t deny it, and neither do I. We sit in the cab a bit longer, cuddled together, just like old times. Shakira’s singing in the background, and I’m suddenly hit with a bus of nostalgia. It brings a lump to my throat, remembering when times were easy, without omegas to worry about, or a government to keep happy. When we were kids, and things were simple.

“We should probably head in.” Zayn startles me out of my thoughts, shifting me until I’m not leaning on his side anymore. I shake my head in affirmative, stopping Zayn before he can leave the car.

“Zayn?”

“Yeah babes?” He turns to look at me, smile tight across his face.

“I promise.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

We walk into the restaurant, finding Harry’s bright teal shirt instantly, and head to our table. It’s circular, and I’m guessing Harry did that on purpose when he booked the table. Louis is sitting next to Niall on one side, Harry on the beta’s left. I boldly sit myself down onto the seat beside Harry, giving Zayn a pointed look, then changing my gaze to the only empty chair.

Zayn rolls his eyes, and I make a point to apologize to him when we return home, even though I’m not really that sorry. Niall hands Zayn and I a menu when the alpha finally takes a seat, the blonde already looking at his own.

“You ever been here before?” Harry goes for small talk, looking to the omega for an answer. We all lower our menus, watching the exchange.

“Wealth wasn’t a big thing in my family,” Niall responds, but the joke falls flat. He looks a little uncomfortable with the inquisitive stares, so I decide to interrupt.

“We come here a lot,” I admit. “It’s our favourite.” And it always has been. “Lots of memories here.” At that, both Louis and his alpha pull a wary expression, and I can tell that Niall has caught it. Thankfully, he doesn’t comment, though I can tell that he’s curious.

Harry and Louis’ past is a fragile and dismal thing, not at all romantic or nice or comforting, like you’d expect from people like them. We deal with it though. Well, if by dealing with it I mean never talk about it, then we’ve mastered the game.

Our waiter comes then, a tall, muscular man with blonde hair, grinning gleefully down at us all. His eyes and smile are bright, and I return one of my own, making a mental reminder to tip the omega waiter well when we leave.

After he leaves the conversation is a jumble of smalltalk and minor questions that have no real depth. I’m not sure how I’m feeling about the date, even though I was enthusiastic before. Zayn is feeling apprehensive and a little awkward as well, and I can tell by the way he’s hunched wordlessly in his chair, not contributing to the talk and never looking up from his lap.

I set my hand onto Zayn’s thigh, squeezing it tightly in reassurance. The alpha finally looks up to me, searching my face, and, apparently, getting what he was looking for. He circles his head around, finally following along in the discussion, and I beam. 

“....very much, do we?” Louis is inquiring, and once I’m listening again I can hear the interest in the tone of the beta’s voice, and I’m instantly intrigued as well. Louis isn’t easily...entertained. Anything that gains his curiosity is usually worth listening to.

“Not really,” Niall replies, shaking his head lightly, straight, floppy hair swishing around his forehead. “We haven’t had much time to get to know each other, really. I don’t know much about you all either.”

“Isn’t much to tell,” Harry lies straight through his teeth, a charming smile set upon his lips. Louis sends him an interesting look, a weird mix of confusion, annoyance, and anger, but his alpha blatantly ignores him, setting all of his attention onto Niall.

“Not for us, anyway,” Harry continues. “But, I wouldn’t mind to know a little bit about you, if you don’t mind.” 

“Not sure if I’m completely comfortable giving all my secrets away without getting anything in return.” Niall laughs nervously, bringing his hand up to bite harshly at his finger-nail.

“Let's make a game out of it then,” Louis says suddenly, breaking into the weird atmosphere that has settled around us when Harry had told the blond something dishonest. But it dispels mostly when Niall laughs loudly at Louis’ comment, agreeing immediately at the thought of interlacing some fun into our evening. I don’t think he notices the glower Louis throws to Harry.

“So, what’s the game?” Niall asks.

“Never have I ever?” I guess, but Louis shakes his head, fondly rolling his eyes.

“Liam!” He groans. “We only play that when we have shots, you know that.” The beta makes an over-dramatic gesture of throwing his hands up in the air and collapsing back down into his chair, shaking his head and wailing, “I thought I taught you better!”

The rest of the table laughs loudly, I chuckle too, though I feel a blush starting to form on my cheeks. It’s worth it though, when Niall throws his head back and cackles, neck exposed and thick and covered in pretty scars. My mouth goes dry, and I tear my eyes away from the sight. It’s definitely not the time, not that any time for feeling that way - like I want to grab him and feel the omega twitch and writhe as I grip his neck with my teeth - is normal or right. 

“Wait, wait!” Louis’ saying over the loud guffaws lighting up the table. But even he is having a hard time explaining himself, holding in little sniggers in-between his shushing noises. I look around the table happily, enjoying the expressions of pure joy on my pack’s faces. It feels like home, for a second.  

“Weren’t we supposed to be playing a game or something?” Louis finally inquires, a huge, merry smile curving up around his lips, creasing his cheeks and the corners of his eyes in an expression that I haven’t seen in awhile.

“Think so,” Harry says thoughtfully, throwing a casual arm over the back of Louis’ chair.

“Ah, it was probably stupid anyway,” dismisses Louis, and I see Niall frown at the comment.

“I’m still up for it, if you all are,” Niall says, smiling at the beta to his left, and continuing, “what’s it?”

Louis’ face morphs into what can only be called an evil smirk, wiggling his eyebrows and flashing his teeth in an almost bloodthirsty grin. “Just something easy,” he says, smile stretching almost impossibly wider. “All you gotta’ do is answer a question, then you get to ask one yourself.” 

“Isn’t that just a normal conversation?” Niall, surprisingly, doesn’t seem intimidated by Louis’ actions. He leans closer to the beta.

“Oh, it really is.” Louis moves to Niall too, until their faces are just inches apart. Niall stands his ground. “But there’s a catch.”

Harry snorts good-naturedly, and Zayn mutters that there  _ always is _ , but both look fondly back at the pair. Niall and Louis ignore the alphas pointedly.

“What? Gonna’ make me take of my clothes every time I answer something wrong?” My breath hitches at the omega’s soft words, and, by the way I can see Louis’ throat constrict around nothing, I can tell he is affected the same way.

Niall smiles, pretty lips curving into a small arc, smooth and shiny, like he’s been licking over them, and if that doesn’t help-

The waiter shows up then, coming in behind Harry and placing the alpha’s plate down onto the table. It startles Niall and Louis enough to jump away from each other, flushes running up both of their cheeks. If the waiter notices - he did - he doesn’t say anything. He just continues placing our plates down one-by-one, pleasant smile on his face. 

“Thank you…” I stammer after he’s given me my food, searching his shirt for a name that doesn’t seem to be there. 

“Ashton,” he says politely, nodding at me. “Enjoy your meal.”

“Thank you, Ashton.”

_ Harry doesn’t come back until year 10,  and he’s all long, unbalanced legs and wide smiles. We aren’t in any classes together, so we don’t talk in class, or in the halls, or outside of school. For a while, if feels like our friendship never existed, and I can’t say that it bothered me. _

“So, omegas first.” Harry smiles toothily, and Niall rolls his eyes at the alpha’s charm. 

It takes a few minutes for Niall to think of a question, and the rest of us wait impatiently as he takes thoughtful bites of his pasta, humming around mouthfuls. 

Finally, he swallows, licking the last of the sauce from his bottom lip, and says, “I’m curious about you five when you were younger, ‘cause you don’t talk about it a lot.” And, well,  _ oh _ . This could turn ugly quickly. “So, what is your favourite memory, together, when you were children?” It doesn’t. Thank God.

“There’s too many, love. How d’ya expect us to pick just one?” Louis chuckles, and it makes Niall frown.

“Well, what about one good one then? One that’s at least memorable?” The blond tries, and Louis nods, thinking as he twirls a fork in his hand thoughtfully. In the end, though, it’s Zayn who answers.

“We went on a trip to Venice after we bonded, spent a few days just wrapped up in the four-star hotel and enjoying the view.” Zayn looks a little sheepish. “It’s something I think I’ll always keep in my head, boys?” And I nod, watching Harry and Louis doing the same.

“Think it’s the most beautiful place I’ve ever been,” Louis adds then. “Not that I can say much, since we don’t travel often, but Italy was just gorgeous.

Niall looks a bit jealous, but giggles just a little when I try to call him on it. “Don’t take it personally, Li. I’ve just wanted to go travelling, backpacking, really, for awhile now. Just haven’t had the time,” the blonde sighs, shaking his head,  “or the money. Been saving since high school to go to Egypt, or Iceland, or Australia, maybe even Brazil. Things just keep coming up.” My first instinct is to react with sweet words and promises of anything and everything that the omega could ever want, but I know that I can’t do that. I’ve figured it out a bit; how Niall works. And right now he’s saying, very obliviously,  ‘I’m-fine-don’t-pity-me’ in his body language, curling into himself. 

It’s so unusual from other omegas (or just people in general) our group has interacted with; the way Niall deals with and reacts to things. It’s not bad, for me at least, but it’s...different. And it’s caused a few problems in our pack dynamic.

It’s hard, because half of the time our instincts are telling us to act a certain way, but when we follow that, it gets a negative reaction out of Niall. The other half of the time we’re trying to go against how our bodies want us to act, but either we do, or say, the wrong thing, yet again, or Niall doesn’t acknowledge we’re trying at all. He never has. And, yes, maybe we’ve been bad people, bad  mates, but it’d be nice to have recognition for trying. Don’t we deserve that?

_ Probably not,  _ my traitorous mind responds to the rhetorical question,  _ don’t really think you deserve anything from Niall. _

And, yeah. Probably not.  

“Any siblings?” Says Harry, grinning through Niall’s reaction like nothing’s happened. He’s good at that.

“Hey, no fair!” Louis whines, “I wanted to ask him first!” He shoves Harry with his shoulder, but the alpha doesn’t seem to mind, dodging the second attack easily. In the end, Louis huffs, making a show of crossing his arms and slumping back into his chair, but he does look towards Niall for his answer.

“Uh, siblings?” Niall smiles. “Just one. Name’s Greg. Got a sister-in-law too, if that counts.”

“We’ve got about a million sisters between us, so it’s nice to have one more brother on our side,” I say. It makes Niall’s grin wider, showing just the smallest bits of his teeth. My heart does somersaults inside my chest.

It takes Niall another minute to think of a second question, but, during that time, I don’t feel anxious. The conversation has been light and happy, so far, no reason to feel like it’s going to go anywhere else. Until, of course, we have to talk about the important things. Like our future.

But that can wait a few minutes.

“How old were you, when you got together?”

“Officially?” Zayn chuckles darkly. “Or in theory?” I cringe at my mate’s choice of words, but Niall isn’t bothered.

“Officially.” The omega doesn’t have to think about  it.

“Harry was fifteen, Zayn and I were sixteen, and Lou was seventeen.” I answer, and, wow, eight years. Everything seems to happen so fast, maybe it’s supposed to do that when you’re in love.

“How many serious relationships have you been in?” Harry asks next, and I’m surprised by the quickness of it. He probably has ten questions thought of for this game already, that’s just how Harry is.

“None,” Niall admits with a shrug. I feel like I should be surprised, but the emotion doesn’t come. “Never really had time for them,” the blond looks down to his lap sheepishly, “and people,  _ alphas _ , mostly, don’t seem to like me very much.” 

A sly smirk comes to Harry’s face. “Maybe there’s a reason for that, love,” he tease, stretching across the table and jabbing Niall in the shoulder. Niall snorts, whacking Harry’s arm away, which, in turn, hits Louis straight in the face. 

I’m trying my damn hardest to keep my face straight, but Louis is looking absolutely shocked by the betrayal (of Niall or Harry, I’ll never know), all wide-eyed and teeth bared, and it’s taking a lot of effort. Niall doesn’t seem to care about the consequences though, because he is very obviously, well, gasp-laughing is what I like to call it. Loud and boisterous and puffing and wheezing between every sound. It usually isn’t a very attractive feature, but Niall somehow makes it work. Or maybe I’m just biased.

“Do you believe in true mates?” Louis questions grumpily after the laughter finally dies down. Harry, Zayn, and I had somehow managed to keep a straight face throughout the episode, but something tells me Niall isn’t going to get reprimanded as badly as us if we would have laughed.

“Absolutely,” Niall answers, but I can tell he can feel the mood in the room drop back to uncomfortable at his one word. I try to keep my features neutral, the rest of the pack, though, is less subtle. 

“So,” the blond continues cautiously, “...I guess that’s not what I should have said? Did I lose the game?” I share a secretive look with Zayn, silently pleading us not to get into this subject. Not tonight.

I wince when Zayn responds to my message verbally, “Liam, you’re the one who wanted to talk about this type of shit. It’s better to get it done sooner than just ignoring it like we’ve been doing.” His voice is sharp and filled with anger. My head sinks in a shame I can feel deep in my stomach. Louis and Harry are wordless, waiting for Niall’s reaction to the scene.

“Care to explain?” I hear the omega say just moments later, my heading lifting in confusion at the annoyance and subtle, underlying hurt that Niall’s emitting. “Did I do something wrong? Are you hiding something from me?”

“ Babes, no one is mad at you, and you didn’t do anything wrong.” Zayn sighs, all of the original anger evaporated into the cool air that’s settled.

“So you’re hiding something from me?”

“No, it’s nothing really. We, I, just wanted to talk, as a group, about some things,” I say, bringing my eyes up to meet Niall’s. His face is tinted pink, hands gripped tightly together on the table. His plate of food sits half full in front of them.

“The first being, how we don’t believe in true mates.” Louis states, leaning back in his chair, trying to look casual. The true-mate-thing has always bothered him the most, and it shows in situations like this.

Niall huffs. “Why not?”

“Well,” Louis starts, and oh shit, he’s using the condescending voice, “because it sounds more like a fairy tale than anything, and there’s never been a proven case.”

“A bunch of kids, plus puppy love, makes for a lot of over-exaggeration,” Zayn adds, tonelessly. Zayn’s pretty bitter about it sometimes, too.

“Not that we don’t respect your opinion.” I’m quick to point out, but the damage is done.

“Yeah.” Niall shrugs, finally looking away from the people at the table to his lap. “Alright.”

“Niall-” 

“Do you even want kids?” The blonde changes the topic quickly, but I think it’s deliberate, from the frustration in his voice. “Any of you?” 

We’re caught in a awkward silence for a couple seconds as I look around to my mates frantically, trying to get an answer that I don’t know from them. 

“I do,” Harry says, and I feel the weight float off of my chest. “But Lou and Liam don’t really want to carry, and you know how the adoption laws in London work…”

“We’d have to be a full pack,” Louis finishes. He grimaces. “I love kids. Just never thought they were a possibility until now.” His face is open, and vulnerable expression visible for everyone to see. Harry puts an arm around his beta, pulling him into his shoulder.

Niall looks away, giving the two privacy, and his curious eyes land on me.

I stutter out a breath. “Yeah, maybe this isn’t the best time, but children are something I’ve always put into the category of ‘not possible’.”

Niall and I turn our gazes to Zayn, who has his head turned the opposite way. “Z? Babe?” I ask, willing him to get past his shame and actually talk to us.

“I don’t know,” he croaks out, and my heart breaks just a little. I can feel the terror he’s feeling, and I know Niall can too.

“It’s okay if you don’t…” Niall sighs, sniffling softly into his shirt sleeve, “if you don’t want me to have your kid. I get it.”

“You’re not the one that’s the problem.” Zayn still isn’t looking at us, and the pit in my stomach keeps growing.

“The baby is?” Niall breathes out, and it becomes obvious when Zayn doesn’t reply. He’s crying, I know, but so is Louis. And Niall. And it’s making me want to throw up. 

People are looking at us, and I know that waiter is walking towards us to kindly ask us to leave the restaurant because we’re causing the other customers distress, but I could care less. It feels like my heart has stopped, and I have no idea if the emotions I’m feeling are even my own. 

I’m curled on the floor, wrapped around my alpha as the servers try to calm us down, so it’s no surprise that I don’t see Niall run out of the building. Or Louis sprinting after him.

 

 

* * *

  
  


?

 

 

The only thought I have is that I have to find him. My senses are dull because of the sensory overload, but I don’t care. I have to get there and I have to find him.

And maybe I’m running.  _ From what, though? _ I can’t even remember. Something about alpha, and pups… 

_ No _ , my mind turns the memory off. My body’s on feral mode, and it doesn’t need any unuseful memories that are just going to make me into a bigger emotional mess.

Now, what was I doing? Running. Running. For what? Was I following someone? Trying to meet someone…

I don’t think much after that. My feral side takes over, and my brain seems to turn off. It’s only when I hear a loud noise, see a light, and I feel I large mass crashing into my chest that my body thinks there may be something wrong. But I only have a second of clarity, a second of sound consciousness, before my sight, and all thought, is destroyed.

  
  
**End of Part One**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :///////////
> 
> Soooooo, it's been awhile. I haven't be that reliable (read: not reliable at all) and I feel absolutely terrible about it, but I got a full time job because my step-sister is having a baby, that was not planned, and she needed some help with financial issues. 
> 
> Also, I thought long and hard about this fic and what I wanted to do with it. At first, I wanted to make one huge story that was like 150 000 words, but, then I remember how bad of a person I am, and decided I wanted to break it up into three or four parts instead, just to make y'all suffer. (And because it's so much easier just to work on one 25 000 - 50 000 word story than to just work on one huge one.)
> 
> And yes, I understand there are plotholes that haven't been filled in this story, and things that I promised to explain that never got explained, and you may think this is me taking the lazy route for writing, and you can think that. Just maybe remember that I have ulterior motives for almost everything.
> 
> So here we are. I hope you enjoyed! :))))))))


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